Demolition to begin on Bognor fridge factory
Demolition contractors are to begin work on a former fridge factory site in Bognor Regis, to make way for a new Sainsbury's store that has been given the go-ahead.
The former Lec factory in the South Coast town will be razed to the ground so that the £50 million regeneration of the site can get underway. A provisional opening date has been set for the new store of spring 2013.
It is hoped that the demolition can begin as soon as possible, as the scheme has already been delayed by a long and arduous planning permission process, which saw more than 1,000 comments submitted to a government-mandated public inquiry.
Sainsbury's spokeswoman, Maria Twomey, said that they were delighted to be well on their way to reopening a store in the town, which has not had a Sainsbury's outlet in a number of years.
"We are confident this development will make a significant contribution to the wider regeneration of the town," she said. "We are excited about becoming part of the community of Bognor once again."
The buildings on the site have been empty since 2003. Some asbestos removal work has already been carried out on the buildings, but contractors are facing a fairly intricate job of cleaning up the chemical contamination of the site from its original use as a gasworks.
