Businessman Paul Lambert, of Bowden Rise, intends to set up Seaford Vision, a consortium of interested people, in order to buy the Beachcomber pub on the seafront.

He wants to convert the space into a community centre with facilities for young people.

Other options include healthcare facilities, affordable housing, a theatre, swimming pool and car parking.

Mr Lambert's idea could also include a hotel, pub with restaurant and on-site brewery, shops or housing.

His scheme follows the dismissal in June of an appeal by developer McCarthy and Stone for old people's flats on the site.

The following month town council leader Jon Freeman outlined ideas for a hotel and community centre to be built there.

At a meeting on Tuesday, Mr Lambert, who runs a property rental company, invited interested parties, including councillors, chamber of commerce members and town planner Alan Edgar, to share his vision.
But he said while ideas were forthcoming no one was willing to pledge money to the scheme.

He said: 'It is early days. I suppose my diary note for (the meeting] is not very encouraging.

'We only really have one focus and that is to acquire the site but in order to sell the idea to folk we want to talk about some of the plan, the community centre and all that stuff.

'Then of course people start to say what about this, what about that?
'But it's all academic really.

'I think we are going to promote the idea to the people of Seaford, to give them the chance to buy shares in Seaford Vision.'
Mr Lambert said the share scheme would act on three tiers with shares costing £1 each.

People could become a gold shareholder by buying 1,000 shares, a silver with 500 and a bronze for 100.

He said by doing this they could work towards a £2.8 million target which, he said, may acquire the site.

On top of that, he said, they would need legal fees, stamp duty and other costs.

Cllr Freeman, who attended the meeting as a county councillor, said the town council would have to remain neutral at this stage.

'The town council, if we were going to do any of the things like the community centre, would have to be a player but if there was another planning application coming in the town council would have to judge that on its merits,' he said.

'It is very difficult for the town council to be a player. The town council has to be neutral.'

He said of Mr Lambert's scheme: 'It is about getting enough resource behind it in terms of experts, to try and get a promise of money.'

Mr Lambert said he hoped to attract further attention and support through the share scheme to obtain some firm investment from local people.