We’re furious after bungling council ‘wasted’ £30MILLION on ‘ridiculous’ 530ft tower – it looks like a massive CHIMNEY
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LOCALS have told of their fury after their council wasted £30million on a "ridiculous" 530ft tower that looks like a chimney. Brighton and Hove City Council loaned £36million towards the building of the Brighton i360 - a 531ft-tall observation tower on the seafront.
![[Brighton and Hove City Council loaned £36million towards the building]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/NINTCHDBPICT000738729646.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
The giant i360 on Brighton seafront was opened in August 2016 with city bosses claiming it would become an iconic global landmark attracting millions of tourists to the resort. But its first 12 months were plagued by mechanical and technical faults which caused the viewing pod to become stuck leaving visitors stranded high in the air.
![[Last month the failing project announced it had gone into administration]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/NINTCHDBPICT000826815137.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
Falling visitor numbers, bad weather and up to £20 ticket prices left the attraction struggling to pay its debt and then the Covid pandemic struck. Operators had promised to pay back the loan and pledged the attraction would bring "millions" of tourists into the city.
![[The glass pod is 10 times bigger than the capsules on the London Eye]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/i360-today-attached-last-24-956276400.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
But last month the failing project announced it had gone into administration - leaving the council with a £32million black hole. The following week the council launched a consultation asking residents to share their views on how it might save £30million.
![[Brighton i360 - a 531ft-tall observation tower on the seafront]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/NINTCHDBPICT000956276494.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
It says the council is launching a "budget simulator" so residents will have their say on whether cuts should be made to adult social care, children’s services, housing, leisure and culture, or community services. Deputy leader Jacob Taylor said: "The new government has provided a significant uplift in local government funding, but the cumulative underfunding of local government over the past 10 years is taking its toll.
![[Fatboy Slim AKA Norman Cook playing to 120 ticket holders in a packed i360 viewing pod]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/gig-live-streamed-watched-thousands-956276471.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
