Eleven undeveloped parcels of land remained at Sovereign Harbour following the completion of the main stages of residential construction in 2009. These sites were untouched until 2016, partly due to the developer's plans for some of them being opposed and refused consent. However, three sites have been developed with residential properties, and further planning applications have been made. This page should be read in conjunction with the Sovereign Harbour Supplementary Planning Document (SHSPD) 
published in 2013.
Site One - Land at Langney Point "White Point"2.1 hectares originally owned by Sovereign Harbour Ltd. Dominated by Martello Tower 66, a Scheduled Monument close to the beach and the seaward entrance to the harbour.
Initially, the site was earmarked for a hotel. Later, the SHSPD identified it as ideal for a seafront leisure area, and the seaward two-thirds of the site was allocated for this purpose. It was agreed that ten houses and 62 apartments in two blocks could be built to fund this.
One condition of the consent was maintaining an uninterrupted view of the Martello Tower. Another was that access to the beach must be maintained for Pevensey Coastal Defence Ltd. contractors to remove the shingle built up behind the harbour arm and transport it to the North Harbour beach. Construction started in 2017, and the ten houses were completed in 2019. Work on the proposed two blocks of flats never started.
In November 2023, Untold Living announced plans for a retirement community on the vacant land that would have been the site for the proposed blocks of flats. The Untold Living scheme would provide 137 flats for residential accommodation in buildings ranging from 4 to 6 storeys with communal and community options on the ground floors. A formal planning application was made in January 2024. The application was refused in March 2024. In July 2024, Untold Living submitted revised plans for approval that lowered the tallest block of apartments by one floor. EBC approved the revised plan in September 2024. More info on our Site 1 webpage here...
In October 2024, the Martello Towers' owners submitted planning applications to convert Towers 64 (Site 9) and 66 (Site 1) into residential holiday accommodation. Planning permission has yet to be decided.
Site Two - Berth holders' car park at the end of Atlantic Drive0.2 hectares owned by Premier Marinas. Opposite Daytona Quay, containing a fifty-five bay car park. Despite being rarely used, in the past, SHL insisted that the provision of this parking was a contractual obligation and that a change of use for this site was impossible. However, this did not prevent it from trying to get consent for residential development on the site some years ago. There are no current plans for development.
Site Three - Fishing fleet area behind the 'Harvester'0.3 hectares previously owned by Sovereign Harbour Ltd, now owned by Premier Marinas. The local fishing fleet uses it to store equipment and land their catch. A planning application for residential development was refused.
The Eastbourne Fishermen put forward plan to develop the site as a "Fishingman's Quay," similar to the development in Hastings. The plan includes a visitor centre, a retail outlet for selling fresh fish, and storage facilities for fishing equipment.
This plan received planning consent in 2015, and revised plans were granted consent in January 2017. Funding, including grant funding, was obtained from various sources, including the good old EU. Phase 1 of this project is the construction of a two-storey building to fillet, store and sell fish, with further storage and offices on the upper floor. The Phase 1 work began in May 2019 and completed in mid-2021. In late 2021, Quay Fisheries, a retail fishery and smoke-house, opened for business but closed in 2023. Phase 2 is under construction.
Site Four - Boat sales display area.0.4 hectares. The curved section of land opposite The Waterfront entrance by the North Harbour Bridge. Previously owned by Sovereign Harbour Ltd, it is now owned by Premier Marinas. Currently used to display boats, it offers open views of the North Harbour.
This site was the subject of a planning application over fifteen years ago for high-rise residential development that would have closed off pedestrian access to the waterside and destroyed the public views of the North Harbour. The application was refused.
The Sovereign Harbour Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) of 2013 identified this site as ideal for extending The Waterfront leisure area. Outline planning consent has been granted for additional restaurants with office accommodation above. There is also provision for a large area of public open space adjacent to the marina for use as a "Village Green". However, no firm development plans were submitted. The SPD stated, "The character of any development on this site, both the built form and public realm, should seek to reinforce the Harbour identity and create a positive relationship to the waterfront for the benefit of residents and visitors and to make it more commercially attractive."
In April 2018, ownership of the site changed hands when Premier Marinas brought it as part of their deal to purchase The Waterfront area following the collapse of Carillion. During the summer months, Premier uses part of the site as an entertainment area with an urban beach sandpit.
Site Five - Old SHL temporary offices 0.1 hectares previously owned by Sovereign Harbour Ltd (SHL). This small parcel of land was occupied by the long-disused SHL temporary offices, which were finally demolished in 2015. This site is adjacent to the Waterfront car park and shares a boundary with Site Six.
Because of the waste buried beneath the site, construction of any structure above a single story would be difficult as it would require the sinking of piles that would breach the membrane containing the waste, possibly affecting the water table.
Despite the above, this site was identified as the preferred site for the Sovereign Harbour Medical Centre! However, in 2007, SHL withdrew the land from sale and offered a piece of land on Site Seven (a) in its place for the Medical Centre (See below).
In 2013, the Sovereign Harbour Supplementary Planning Document (SHSPD) identified this site as the ideal location for the long-awaited Sovereign Harbour Community Centre. At the public consultation on the SHL Master Plan outline planning application, a model of the proposed centre on this site was provided for approval. Residents were delighted with the design.
Then, in 2016, despite planning consent for the centre having been granted in 2015, SHL suddenly withdrew the site as a survey had determined that there was indeed contamination and "a risk of unexploded ordnance" (despite our requests, no proof of this ordnance has been provided). In late 2016, a corner of Site 6 (below) was designated as the site for the Community Centre.
In April 2020, Premier extended The Waterfront car park to encompass much of Site 5.
Site Six - Easter Island Place 3.2 hectares, now owned by Premier Marinas. Previously known as “Commercial Site One”, this is the large parcel of land between Pevensey Bay Road and Harbour Quay at the entrance to the North Harbour. Many will know it as the “B&Q” site following two unsuccessful planning applications to build a DIY Superstore on the land. For many years it was used as a boat storage area. The wooded area beside Pevensey Bay Road is a protected area.
The site was jointly acquired by Eastbourne Borough and East Sussex County Councils on a 999-year lease to develop a business park. In August 2015, the Sovereign Harbour Innovation Park (Pacific House) opened for business; four more office buildings were planned for the site.
In February 2017, a planning application was submitted for the construction of the Sovereign Harbour Community Centre on a corner of the plot beside the road leading into the Retail Park. Construction commenced in late 2017and the centre opened in late 2019.
In late 2019, in a consultation on a new Local Plan for Eastbourne to cover the period from 2018 to 2038, EBC proposed a land use change for Sites 6 and 7 as more offices were unnecessary or should be located in the town centre. The change would allow Sites 6 and 7 to be used for B1 light industry. SHRA responded, saying it would prefer the land remain designated for office development or be used for leisure or housing.
Adjacent to Site Six, "The Shingle Bank" was used to re-bury landfill refuse from other areas of the Sovereign Harbour development area and is venting methane gas. The waste is protected by membranes and covered by a “shingle mound”. There are no plans to develop this area. Any development of this area would be prohibitively expensive and somewhat risky as who knows what might be exposed. This area was acquired by Premier Marinas in 2019 following the collapse of Carillion and is now ringed by a low boundary fence.
Site Seven A - Land alongside Pevensey Bay Road2.05 hectares, owned by Sovereign Harbour Ltd. Previously part of the vast parcel of land known as “Commercial Site Two” (in total 4.2 hectares), between Pevensey Bay Road and Pacific Drive West, which was also reserved initially as part of the Business Park development.
The 2013 Sovereign Harbour Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) identified this site as ideal for employment use, and in 2019, EBC's new Eastbourne Plan proposed that the designation of Site 6 should include B1 light industrial use.
Following the withdrawal of Site Five as the location for the Sovereign Harbour Medical Centre, the proposed site was moved to a corner of this site. Construction began in January 2011, and the Harbour Medical Practice opened for business in December of that year. Interestingly, at the B&Q planning meeting, Sovereign Harbour Ltd stated that the land on Sites Six and Seven had "negative value" but still charged the PCT £250,000 for the Medical Centre plot.
In September 2022, a joint development by Aldi, McCarthy Stone and LNT Care proposed an Aldi store and car park (these would be adjacent to the medical centre, and the store would be about the same size as the Aldi at Hampden Park), a 66 bed, three-story, residential care home and a development of 57 retirement living units - the latter two within landscaped gardens. All three developments would be accessed from Pacific Drive. Despite strong local opposition over traffic concerns, the formal planning application was approved in August 2023. See our Site 7 webpage...
Site Seven B- Land alongside Pevensey Bay Road0.8 hectares, owned by JWS Homes Ltd. Also previously part of land known as “Commercial Site Two”.
The 2013 Sovereign Harbour Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) identified that this site should be reserved as a public open space.
The S.106 agreement for Site Seven (c) requires the developer to landscape the area so that it is available for use by the time the development of that site is complete. In 2019, plans for the open space were prepared. Landscaping of the site began in January 2021 but was subsequently delayed by the pandemic. The park opened in 2022.
Site Seven C "Macaulay Place"2.08 hectares, owned by JWS Homes Ltd. Previously part of land known as “Commercial Site Two” and reserved initially as part of the Business Park development.
The Sovereign Harbour Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) identified this site as the location for "Macaulay Place", a development of 37 four-bedroom houses, 15 five-bedroom houses, 12 two-bedroom apartments, 2 three-bedroom apartments and 4 three-bedroom maisonettes; a total of 70 homes.
The construction of these homes will fund the development of the public open space on Site Seven (b). Construction began in early 2017 and will continue into 2024. Homes began to be occupied in 2019.
Site Eight - Far end of North Harbour "Port Moresby Place"0.3 hectares owned by Sovereign Harbour Ltd. A narrow strip of land at the far end of the North Harbour bordering Pacific Drive. Consent was given for this land to be used as a berth-holder car park, and purchasers of adjacent properties were given assurances that there would be no residential development on this plot. However, the car park was never constructed, and Sovereign Harbour Ltd attempted to persuade the Borough Council that it should be used for high-density, high-rise residential development.
The Sovereign Harbour Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) identified this site as ideal for a marina-side public open space. It was agreed that this would be funded by the construction of eight high-quality homes, for which planning consent was granted under the name Port Moresby Place
The plan required 50% of the site, the land closest to the marina, to be paved and landscaped for public use. A condition of the consent was that the public open space was to be completed before two-thirds of the homes were sold. This condition was not met, and in July 2018, EBC enforced the condition, resulting in the sale of the final property being put on hold for four months. With the open space almost complete, the sale eventually went through in December 2018. The open space was finally completed in late 2019.
Site Nine - The Martello Tower No. 64 on North Harbour beachMartello Tower no. 64 is a Grade II Listed Building and a Scheduled Monument. It was owned by Sovereign Harbour Ltd., who retained access to the building from Caroline Way. The building is currently in a poor state of repair and is on the buildings at risk register. The Tower could, in principle, be converted into an alternative use and as it is essential to secure its long-term repair and maintenance, the conversion could be supported subject to discussion with English Heritage.
In October 2024, the Martello Towers' owners submitted planning applications to convert Towers 64 and 66 (site 1) into residential holiday accommodation. Planning permission has yet to be decided.
Site Ten - Outer Harbour peninsula1.5 hectares owned by Premier Marinas. Previously used by the local fishing boat operators to store equipment, Premier Marinas purchased it from Sovereign Harbour Ltd in about 2008 and cleared.
Premier has not published any plans for the site. Pevensey Coastal Defence Ltd uses part of the site for stockpiling shingle.
Site Eleven - Land at the end of Key West adjacent to the locks0.1 hectares owned by Premier Marinas. As with Site Ten, it was sold by Sovereign Harbour Ltd to Premier Marinas. The Borough Council has always aimed to develop this area as a visitor attraction; residents share this ambition.
Despite receiving substantial income from residents through the “Marina Rentcharge”, Premier Marinas has indicated in the past that it was not prepared to spend money on improving this area. In the past, Premier used the fact that residents successfully contested a previous planning application to develop the site* as an excuse. However, that application was submitted by Sovereign Harbour Ltd well before the sale to Premier, and Premier purchased it with the knowledge that the site was designated as a tourist destination.
In early 2019, SHRA asked Premier to look into making access across this area more wheelchair and pram-friendly. Premier agreed to do so but hasn't. Further discussions took place in late 2024.
* Residents opposed the Planning Application 050728 2005 because it included a “turning circle” for the Dotto train, which would have run along the outer harbour promenade, close to the rear exits of many properties. Because of these exits, the unfenced steps bordering the prom and the number of pedestrians who use the promenade, many of them children, this would have been a safety risk.