New café and water sports venue to be launched on Littlehampton seafront
Planning consent has been given for a new café and water sports venue set to open on Littlehampton seafront in 2018.
The venue will be located on the seafront opposite the Skate Park where the under-used promenade shelter is currently situated. The venue will offer customers the opportunity to have a meal while enjoying the fantastic sea views.
This part of the seafront is the Council’s designated location for water sport activities and the facility will offer kite surfing and stand-up paddle boarding lessons, as well as on-site amenities such as toilets, showers, shelter and cycle racks.
In 2016, the site was advertised as a development opportunity with the Council keen for proposals that would add value and support the local tourism economy.
Following a competitive tendering and shortlisting process, Jamie Hawkins, owner of Coastal Coffee, became the successful business operator.
Jamie, who has many years of experience in operating food and drink outlets and is also a former professional windsurfer who won the world championships three times, said: “This has been a dream of mine for many years. The facility, which is yet to be named, will fill an important gap in the market, linking the venue to the main visitor seafront and the new leisure centre and Mewsbrook Park, making this area of seafront more appealing.”
“The water sport aspect of the business will enable me to give something back to the community and a great way of sharing my passion and knowledge of water sports I have practised over the years.”
Jamie will be investing £500k into the facility and creating 10 full time jobs and 12 part-time jobs for the area.
He added: “The venue will offer a wide selection of food and drinks for both the local community and visitors to enjoy and we are delighted to be working with Arun District Council on making this concept a reality.”
Councillor Mrs Gillian Brown, Leader of Arun District Council and Cabinet Member for Economy and Policy, said: “The facility will provide an enjoyable environment to eat and drink and to capture the views out to sea. There are limited facilities to support water based activities on the seafront and I am sure the venue will quickly become a popular and well-established water sports destination.”
The plans were given the approval of the Development Control Committee on Wednesday 13 December 2017. Construction of the venue will commence early 2018 and the proposed build programme will take at least six months.
For further information on this project, or for more information about regeneration in Littlehampton, please contact Phil Graham on 01903 737858 or phil.graham@arun.gov.uk