Preston Park Hotel has applied to Brighton and Hove City Council to build a coffee kiosk on the south-west corner of its site, facing Preston Road, the A23 into Brighton.
The application, reference BH2026/02343, is a full planning application for the "erection of coffee kiosk" at the hotel, 216 Preston Road, BN1 6UU. The council received it on 15 October 2026 and validated it on 27 October. The planning register shows it as registered, with no decision yet.
What the hotel wants to build
The kiosk would stand on a small part of the hotel's grounds that is currently scrub, foliage and a car parking space. According to the planning statement submitted by the hotel's agent, Lewis and Co Planning, the hotel already serves coffee inside but sees "very limited public interest", and a street-facing kiosk would "open up" the corner to commuters and people walking past.
The statement says the main customers would be hotel guests, who could buy a coffee for a walk around the park or into town, and describes heavy footfall past the site because it sits on the main route to Preston Park station. The kiosk would sell hot and cold drinks.
No hot food would be prepared, so the statement says no extraction or venting is needed. There would be no toilet or staff room in the kiosk, and staff would be expected to walk to the hotel for breaks. The applicant adds that the council could control opening hours and the building's use class by condition if it thought that necessary.
Trees, scrub and the conservation area
To make room, an area of foliage and bushes would be removed. The application proposes low-level planting and nine trees along the frontage in its place. The statement describes the scrub as frequently used for litter and fly-tipping, and argues that the kiosk would cause no harm to the area.
The site sits in the Preston Park Conservation Area, which the council's planning register lists among the site's constraints. Whether the design and the loss of the scrub are acceptable is for the council to decide, using its City Plan policies on design, amenity and conservation areas.
When it will be decided and how to comment
The council's register gives these dates. The standard consultation expires on 24 November 2026 and the neighbour consultation on 1 December. A site notice was posted on 6 November and stays up until 27 November, and the press advert, also dated 6 November, runs to 4 December. The deadline for a decision is 22 December 2026.
The register lists five public comments so far. Comments can be made on the application page of the council's planning register using the reference BH2026/02343.
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