Building Opinions: Robert Nemeth

Marine Gate

I mentioned in my recent piece on the Van Alen Building that residents of other quality local blocks, such as Marine Gate, should consider starting websites. Several Marine Gate residents got in touch to say that they already have one. The chance to write about Marine Gate was too good an opportunity to miss so I visited my old Regency Society friends John and Mary McKean for a tour.

Marine Gate was built on a new cliff-top road from Brighton to Rottingdean in 1939 to the designs of architects Wimperis, Simpson & Guthrie, a London-based firm that specialised in much more traditional buildings. It featured 120 flats (let on 3.5- and 7-year leases) with three grand entrances and spectacular views out to sea and across the Downs. The original sales brochure shows cows grazing in the vicinity whilst boasting that the building is “five minutes by car from station” (perhaps from Kemp Town Station).

Just as Embassy Court in Brighton and 4 Grand Avenue in Hove have had to adjust over the years, Marine Gate has lost its own restaurant (“grill room”), off licence, letting rooms and social areas in favour of new flats (now 132 in total) and garages. It at least fared better than the nearby 1930s lido at Black Rock, also featured in the brochure, that was demolished in 1978, though sadly lost its glorious yellow-brick finish in favour of white paint.

“The original sales brochure shows cows grazing in the vicinity”

Just as caring residents of Embassy Court and 4 Grand Avenue had to battle to buy their freeholds and start improving their buildings, a dedicated team is on top of things at Marine Gate. It is a much more complicated structure than the others though.

I must plug www.marinegate.co.uk. The best bit describes what happened when four German bombs hit during the Second World War.

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Twitter: @robert_nemeth