ds 'F' 4 Royal Sussex

The Drill Hall is shown on the 1913 OS Map.

The Drill Hall on Pier road is listed in 'Buildings and Structures of Character 2005', by Arun District Council. The specific criteria cited for this drill hall's inclusion are that it is a good example of 'traditional, established or unusual' style, that is has historical associations and that it is largely intact. We would be grateful for information about its age and history.

According to an Outline Planning Application, November 2006, this sea-front drill hall was originally an old warehouse, which has been much altered. It was formed by combining at least two smaller buildings under a steel truss roof. The application claims that the only original feature is the front walling which is suffering from age and has numerous splints and tie-rods. Some interesting features apparently remain in the construction of the frontages. Sadly, the cobble walling has been coated with pitch, painted, neglected and damaged by floods, so that the fabric is seriously decayed.

The plan argued that it has been ruined and 'there is no real prospect of restoring it to anything like a good example of the craft. ... This structure has been proposed for inclusion in the list of buildings of character, however as the interest resides in the front walls only, and as they are in a very poor or even dangerous state, it is hard to see how a long-term use that will preserve the building can be found.'

The application proposed a new two storey building adjacent, to provide the ACF with a purpose built facility, and a change of use for the former drill hall so that it could be used for business. Although the plan states that the building needs a full reconstruction of the roof and stabilisation of the walls, our reading of the planning application is that the authors probably believe that demolition is the only practical option.