Moss Plan

In the autumn of 1998 local residents received a well produced folder inviting their views on the development of Shoreham harbour. This was the first public consultation about the Moss plan. The firm, Moss EDP Ltd, headed by Graham Moss, had been commissioned to draw up a plan for the development of Shoreham harbour & the surrounding areas. There had been earlier studies & these were available to Moss. Those commissioning Moss included the harbour authority, local authorities & others. The core proposal of the Moss plan was to concentrate port activities into a compact area & thereby free land, currently occupied by the port, for other uses. The freed land would be available for housing, offices, light industry & recreation. From this proposal followed some drastic consequences. The most controversial was the reclamation of land from the sea off Southwick beach thus closing the beach & the access to it over the lock gates. Another proposal was for a road tunnel to carry traffic from the harbour directly to the Brighton by-pass & so reduce pressure on local roads. Since the first 1998 consultation document there has been constant discussion of the proposals by the local authorities, all political parties, the local Member of Parliament & the press. The Association of Harbour Communities has taken an active & informed part in this on-going debate.

A modified version of the Moss plan has been approved by substantially the same organisations that commissioned it. The body now trying to make the Moss plan a reality comprises Shoreham Port Authority, Adur District Council, Brighton & Hove Council, West Sussex County Council, Sussex Enterprise, the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA) & the Government Office for the South East (GOSE). This organisation uses the style Shoreham Maritime Partnership. The most conspicuous change in the Moss plan concerns Southwick beach. The current proposals envisage continued access over the lock gates to a public beach, about one third the length of the present beach, but with better amenities. Shoreham Port Authority has commissioned Halcrow Maritime to prepare an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) & preliminary design for the beach and the areas on either side of it that will be reclaimed from the sea. Halcrow invited the public to comment on their proposals.

Most people in the area think there should be a regeneration plan. Most Southwick residents oppose loss of any part of their beach. All concerned agree that good road access to the port is essential if any plan is to succeed. Money for these roads is not in anybody’s budget at present. So the debate can continue.