White Rock Park & Bohemia Masterplan

Despite lying between two rail stations close to Hastings town centre, White Rock is strangely isolated due to weak connections within the area and with the wider town. A distinct lack of sports and cultural amenity, combined with ageing leisure facilities and deteriorating heritage buildings, add to the air of decline. Sweeping coastal views are enjoyed by a limited number of people. There is little here to interest visitors.

However, White Rock is richly layered; traces of historical Hastings permeate everyday community life. The area is peppered with secret gardens, large open spaces, fragments of historic parkland and civic buildings. The masterplan respects and protects the area’s heritage and character, while creating a high quality cultural and leisure destination with a strong sense of place that reconnects White Rock with Hastings and St Leonard’s.

Visionary, pragmatic, experimental, inclusive

By celebrating White Rock’s existing assets, there is a huge potential to create new opportunities for the town. Improving leisure and cultural provision, as well as outdoor recreational space brings White Rock back to life, for both locals and visitors. Retail opportunities are planned to complement the town centre and tourist economy, along with new hotel accommodation. By introducing a mix of uses, such as high quality housing, can be a potential source of finance for other projects. Strengthening pedestrian, cycling and public transport infrastructure, as well as rethinking parking provision, makes for a connected emerging neighbourhood.