State of the City 2012

A round up of 2012's State of the City debate

If I had to sum up the 7th annual State of the City in one word, it would be ‘conversation’. From 6pm the reception room at Brighton University’s Sallis Benney theatre was filled with the sound of energetic discussion, and it was clear that the event was an important chance for members of local government to meet Chamber members and Brighton businesspeople.

As attendees chatted over complimentary drinks and nibbles, the Chamber tech team prepared to put the main event online. @brightonchamber tweeted all evening so that people interested in the event could respond despite their absence, and Roger French (the Chair) quipped, “For this event we actually ask you to keep your phones ON!”, inviting the audience to join in.

We complied, tweeting away – for a roundup of Twitter highlights click here - and responding to poll questions by text (click here for the poll results).

Julia Chanteray, the Chamber’s President, said: “This is your chance to get meaningful answers to the things you want to know,” reiterating the importance of the event as an open forum.

Martin Williams, representing Mayo Wynne Baxter, the event’s sponsors, agreed that State of the City was a great opportunity for Brighton’s businesspeople to voice opinions about their city.

He said: “We have a superb city here and this event needs to happen.”

Julia Chanteray, Tony Mernagh, Jason Kitcat and Olivia Reid made up the panel and were poised ready to respond to questions entered online and on the day.

Julia reminded attendees that the event was not about “bashing”, but coming to constructive conclusions, and even during the long-anticipated ‘Transport’ section I was surprised to see this advice so wholly respected.

The event was divided into four categories, with transport (the most controversial topic of the evening, and one predicted to centre on parking price hikes) left until last. The other three sections were ‘Business in Brighton’, ‘The Brighton Brand’, and ‘Sustainability’.

‘Business in Brighton’ was a bit of an ego-massage for the city, as the panel discussed why so many businesses wanted to be based in Brighton.
“We have one of the best qualified workforces in the south east, possibly in the country. 48% are qualified to NVQ level 4. We also have a fantastic place to live”, said Tony Mernagh, of the Brighton and Hove Economic Partnership.

Julia Chanteray said: “We have a wide range of organisations who work together – buying and selling to each other and skill sharing. The cross fertilisation of business in our city is very important.”

Olivia Reid, owner of Terre a Terre, agreed, commenting: “There’s a feeling in the restaurant business that we are not in competition, we are working together.”

The audience and the panel swelled with pride as they discussed the benefits of the city as a centre for business, and the positive start increased the desire to find solutions to some of Brighton’s shortcomings.

Then came ‘Brighton Brand’, and talk moved from Brighton’s best bits to its complacency.
“We seem very laggard in seeing our own scars and fixing them,” one audience member pointed out.
“What we have that’s been here 100 years is glorious, but what we’ve left to lag is sad,” he said, citing the Astoria cinema and buildings around Preston Park as missed opportunities.

“We must avoid complacency at all costs,” Tony Mernagh agreed. “We’re all sitting here waiting for somebody else to turn the city around, but we’re the ones who can do it.”

Jason Kitcat disagreed that the city was being complacent, calling Brighton a “city of tomorrow” that was constantly on the move.
“We have to continue to be aspirational,” he said.

Much of the discussion in the ‘Sustainability’ section focused on planning, and it was here that things started to turn political.

“Planning in Brighton and Hove over the last ten years has been appalling – it’s a case of ‘if it’s not a vote winner, it won’t happen in my ward’. I’m assured that’s not the case with the new administration but they’ll have to prove it,” Tony Mernagh challenged.

Julia Chanteray agreed, and said: “My problem with planning is when it takes 10 weeks to change the fascia on your shop. I really don’t understand why it takes so long, and I’ve seen people end up in terrible trouble over it.”

One audience member pointed out that 70% of journeys in the city are made by local people, and suggested a change of attitude was necessary to make Brighton more sustainable. This led on to the ‘beast’ of the evening – transport.

Jason Kitcat’s claim that people who walk or cycle into the city spend more money was met with calls of “rubbish!”.

“I don’t think people are being put off coming here by parking prices,” Jason Kitcat said, defending the council’s recent price hike. He said attractions like the SeaLife centre and the Royal Pavilion have made the city’s tourist economy weatherproof, and people are continuing to visit the town.

This was countered by Sharon Callaghan, of Strawberry Fields hotel, who said “We’re really noticing parking is driving visitors out of the city.”
Jason Kitcat’s response quickly closed the subject – “We will review the data after six months, but so far it doesn’t actually suggest that.”
It looks like business owners will have to wait and see...

Park and Ride was the second transport issue, and dealt with equally firmly.
“It’s gone, it’s off the agenda, we’ve got to think of alternatives,” said Tony Mernagh simply.
“Roger and I have spent two decades lobbying park and ride. There is not a site of significant size – 1000 to 1500 spaces – where it could be sited.”
Jason Kitcat agreed, closing the final portion of the evening.

“The number of times ‘we’ was mentioned tonight was hugely encouraging”, Roger French said, and audience members agreed that it was good to see representatives from different sectors of the city agreeing that they were all responsible for its development.

Sarah Springford, the Chamber’s Director, said the event was “about getting people thinking”, and discussions in the pub afterwards suggested the debate had done its job. Fabrica Bates, from the Community and Voluntary Sector Forum, said: “It was my first Chamber event, and I really enjoyed it!”

For two hours on Wednesday there was a dialogue between business leaders, local government and Chamber members, both through Twitter and the open debate. A variety of experiences and perspectives were pooled to get a clearer picture of the successes and failures of the city, and this can only be a good thing for Brighton. I hope the dynamic, practical conversations I witnessed at State of the City continue throughout the year.

By Sarah Morgan

Sarah is a freelance journalist and runs the blog Bright [as a butt] on 

Want to get involved in our next free Big Debate? Book now for the next event, September 26th: http://www.businessinbrighton.org.uk/event/the-big-debate-night-time-economy 

If you want to contribute to the Chamber blog, contact us on hannah@brightonchamber.co.uk