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Preston Park Avenue

Demolition of Preston Place 2004
By Alan (Fred) Pipes
Photo:Preston Place, about to be demolished, 23 July 2004. The tiles have been removed from the roof.
Photo:Preston Place, about to be demolished, 21 July 2004. The tiles are being removed from the roof. The gate sculptures disappeared shortly after this photo was taken!
Photo:Preston Place, about to be demolished, 21 July 2004. The tiles are being removed from the roof.
Photo:Preston Place, about to be demolished, 23 July 2004.
Photo:Preston Place, being demolished, 9 August 2004. View from the rear.
Photo:Preston Place, demolished, 11 August 2004.
Photo:The site of Preston Place, 25 August 2004. Note missing trees!

Preston Place was a 1930s Lutyens-style mock-Tudor house on the corner of Preston Park Avenue and Stanford Avenue, Brighton. I think it was a hotel in its latter days. On 21st July 2004, I noticed it and a modern house in its grounds were about to be demolished! These photos document the process. I subsequently found out that they were being demolished to make way for 20 units of 'affordable housing', i.e. a block of flats.

Added to the site on 16th September 2004
This page was added on 22/03/2006.

Comments:

Why do we have to demolish lovely looking old buildings like these? Surely they can be redone using modern materials keeping up the exterior look with all mod cons internally?
By Tommy Randell (28/03/2006)
We stayed at Preston Place in September 1994, when it was a B&B. It was our first trip to the UK (from Australia) and our first exposure to the best of British hospitality. How sad that it is no longer there.
By Alan Moyse (11/05/2006)

We are now living in the new development which in fact comprises a total of 50 flats, 20 of which are 'affordable housing'. It's a shame about the old house but it's a pleasure living in this area of Brighton.

By Alan Hilton (20/11/2006)

It's a shame that Brighton & Hove Council planners seem to be doing to Brighton what was done in the 1960s and 70s i.e. removing older houses in the name of progress. The difference being that in the 60/70s it was the Victorian and Edwardian housing stock (read 'The Vanishing Villas of Preston & Withdean') and in the 2000s it's the large 1930s houses e.g.Preston Place & the houses in the Drive. I'd be interested to know what price is classed as 'affordable' housing, as the 2 bed flats I've seen have been about £300,000 (penthouses are £469,950) and are all built to an unnecessarily high spec. Still, that term gets your plans through the planning department if you're a developer!

By Vicky Simmonds (14/01/2007)

We live in the US and have stayed with John and Pauline may times. We are trying to locate them. They may have moved to Cornwall. John loved it there. I can't remember their last name. I think it was either Bullock or Pollack. Can anyone help. Thanks

By Bill Howington (31/07/2008)

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