On Monday night there was a public meeting about the plans for the redevelopment of the North Street area, otherwise known as ‘The Phoenix Quarter’, in the Town Hall. The room was packed. At one point a member of the audience noted that the meeting wasn’t ‘balanced’: that nobody was speaking on behalf of the developer. As we want to hear a balanced view on the proposal, we have opened a dialogue with the developer to see if he can answer these and other worrying questions. How much would the proposed development add to the population of Lewes? Are adequate parking facilities planned for the influx of cars the development would lead to? Where would the (presumably) hundreds of newly arrived children go to school? How would an already overstretched medical infrastructure cope with such a large increase in the population? Could the town cope with the increase in traffic which would inevitably run through the town centre? How much of the housing would be affordable for the increasing number of young Lewesians who are currently unable to buy a property in their home town? Would the envisaged flood protection for the area merely increase the risk to the rest of town? How long would the building process, with all the inconvenience, pollution and noise it would create, take? What proportion of the shops in the development would be multinational chains, and how will this affect the independent traders in the town centre? How much would the new quarter aesthetically blend with the rest of our beautiful town? We understand the reasons why a property developer should want to undertake such a huge project: but, in short, what benefits would Lewes get from such a massive redevelopment? We’re looking forward to some answers. Enjoy the week.