When Anthony asked if I could read the Brighton and Hove City Plan my heart sank slightly and even more when I saw it, as it is 200 pages long, with lots of supplementary documents.

And yes, I have not read the whole document from cover to cover, but what I have read is very interesting. It is not highly technical, it is about the place that I live in and care about and proposes redevelopment of some of the less attractive parts of my neighbourhood.

There are plans for so many areas of the city which I use: the seafront, the city centre, the Marina, Lewes Road, London Road. (the full list of ‘development’ and ‘special’ areas are listed below). It also deals with a number of important issues for the city such as providing more housing and jobs, improving public spaces and transport, and a permanent site for travellers.

We are lucky to be bounded by the sea and the Downs and these beautiful natural features do give a lot of character to the City but it also limits expansion. There is a plan to build more than 11,000 new homes as well as more schools and GP surgeries. There are also citywide themes for the City which cover areas such transport, employment, public places and a health.

This is a consultation document which is the overall plan for the city to 2030 and the next month is the last chance to change anything, so it needs us to provide feedback. We are going to discuss ideas on how we can get people involved in the plan at the CityCamp meetup tonight (7pm, Hove Kitchen), and we’ll be posting more here on the Demsoc blog on Friday.

Development Areas

• Brighton Centre and Churchill Square Area
• Brighton Marina, Gas Works and Black Rock Area
• Lewes Road Area
• New England Quarter and London Road Area
• Eastern Road and Edward Street Area
• Hove Station Area
• Toad’s Hole Valley
• Shoreham Harbour

Special Areas

• The Seafront
• Central Brighton
• Valley Gardens
• Urban Fringe
• The South Downs
• Sustainable Neighbourhoods