Half-demolished Esplanade House up for sale

Esplanade House, in Eastern Esplanade, is half-demolished and has been empty for about seven years, but the site is earmarked for a hotel and more than 200 flats.

After five years and three rejected planning applications, final permission was only granted by Southend Council a couple of weeks ago, raising hopes development could soon begin.

Owners the Robert Leonard Group wanted to bulldoze the crumbling building to create a 12-storey development including a 64-bedroom hotel, 216 flats, a restaurant and shops.

But now the 3.5-acre site is being marketed with a “price on application tag” by Chelmsford-based Bidwells Property Consultants, which is selling the site by “informal tender”.

Bidwells is inviting interested parties to make an offer by Wednesday, September 15.

Independent councillor for Thorpe ward, Ron Woodley, who opposed plans for the site, said: “The council should be looking at developers to make sure they have the finances in place to fulfil the commitments they’re putting forward in planning applications.

“Every time we fail to do this.

“Esplanade House is in ruins but Kursaal residents have been looking onto this site for so long.

“What a testament to Southend Council’s planning policies. The whole thing is wrong.”

Mark Flewitt, the Tory councillor for planning, was positive about the sale and hoped any new owners would develop the site in line with the planning permission. He said: “Rather than have it lying there empty, of no use to the local economy, we need to get these buildings in use.

In response to Mr Woodley’s concerns, he added: “There’s always an element of risk in planning. In an ideal world, we would be able to check if developers have the right finances.”

But Mr Woodley added the sale means further delays. He said: “The new developer may want to put new plans in, so it just goes on.”

No one from the Robert Leonard Group was available for comment yesterday.