Talking to the Pevensey Bay Journal (24 July), new owner of the historic Mint House in Pevensey, Jason Rolf said he was “considering his options”.
In a searchingly blunt appraisal of the circumstances, almost exactly one year after buying the site that includes the Mint House, he told us “I have two options for The Mint House itself, turn it into small offices or convert to residential – my preference is for the former because that is why I purchased the property but we will have to see how difficult the building regs are and whether or not an old building like this can feasibly be brought up to modern standards which are tougher for commercial space than for residential.
Jason Rolf bought the site at auction in July 2018.
In an exclusive interview (18 September 2018) Jason talked about the 24 hours that led up to his decision to buy the site, “I’d spotted The Old Mint House earlier in the year when it came to auction previously but I was busy with another project so when it came up again I decided to investigate further.
“I look at a lot of prospective commercial properties and they have to make long-term financial sense. At the Old Mint House there were clearly a lot of issues that would need attention and it was going to be difficult to evaluate quickly especially with the auction only a few weeks away. On top of that the years it had remained vacant meant it was being slowly engulfed by vegetation, some of which had made its way inside the property.
“After downloading the full legal pack and reading through every document I spent evenings and weekends contacting anyone who might offer up some helpful advice and information. Much like the viewing, this brought good and bad news but with just one day till the auction I had worked out it was just about viable to take on and 24 hours later I was the new owner”.
In the interview we talked a little about his suggestion that there might be a possibility for a few digital start up companies to be based in the building. He has an interest in another project in East Sussex that is tenanted by some companies that have a national profile with their cutting edge work in the fields of performance arts and puppetry.
Jason said, Ideally I’d like to get the building tenanted with the creative arts. The full property is classed as B1 commercial which tends to bring in small, light industries typically from the creative sector. These can be anything from handicrafts right through to digital productions. There is a huge shortage of simple, inexpensive commercial units for small businesses to work from and I believe The Old Mint House would be a fabulous opportunity and location for this.
Through the autumn of last year Jason kept us informed with the onerous task of beginning to clear overhanging vegetation on the site and other matters of basic safety and security of the site.
In April this year he appointed an architect, explaining. “I have a very pleasant architect working hard on a planning application, her background is historic/listed properties so she knows her stuff”.
“At this stage”, he added, “we still need permission to start fixing structural defects like the leaning chimney etc and some roof work and then decide on any changes for the internal layout”.
Commenting on rumours that the building might be turned back to become an antiques gallery which circulated when he made the purchase he commented at the time, “I’d be very surprised if the front of the building became retail in any shape or form because there is such little demand at the present time, there are enough empty shops in surrounding villages and towns already”.
By April this year Jason pointed out, “the rear of the property and the courtyards have been completely cleared of vegetation along with all the roof, guttering and drainage so at least it is all largely weather proof. This has taken a lot of time because some of the plants had grown into the building and needed careful removal”.
The excitement about what night happen is palpable. Of course so much will be determined by the outcome of any planning applications, but in theory at this stage we are seeing a project that is a once in a generation opportunity for Pevensey to see significant economic benefit.
The project at the site may prove one day to be transformative to the economic fortunes of the historic village.
At the present stage (July 23), Jason explained that a planning application had been lodged with Wealden Council.
He said, “a planning application has just gone in as part of the works being carried out on the rear buildings, otherwise there is nothing else to report I’m afraid. Plans for the Mint House itself are still being worked on, mainly to do with what needs fixing and how/who to fix it”.
The question about what will happen with the historic Mint House building, the centrepiece of the site, are now clearly under further consideration.
His outline of the two options, “turn it into small offices or convert to residential” with “his preference is for the former” is clearly now being informed by the question of feasiibilty.
His comment yesterday (July 23) “we will have to see how difficult the building regs are and whether or not an old building like this can feasibly be brought up to modern standards which are tougher for commercial space than for residential”. will obviously inform any progress that can be made with the building in terms of any restoration to economic use.
Comment on the Bay Life social media news feed about the project has been seen by the owner.
Tom Barsley (23 July) said “I was told last night that the Mint House is going to be put back into, two separate dwellings, which it was originally (if you look at the front, 2 front doors still remain). However, the cottage next door (owned by someone else) is in a sorry state of repair, I’ve been told it is so bad, that it is being held together with a ratchet strap. If the strap was to be removed the building would fall in”.
In response, owner, Jason Rolf commented “The cottage next door is in a poor state, that is true. It had a bad rat infestation although the council are aware. It may well have a ratchet strap but that is very common practice for timber framed buildings where a potential problem has been spotted – nothing to worry about and some people leave them in place for years before they attend to the issue.
The ambition and vision of Jason Rolf to see the site returning to some kind of economic activity is continuing to be watched with interest by many observers, with credit being given to the new owner for his clarity about the circumstances and his decision to keep the community informed with progress about the project.
A view of both the ambition and inspiration of Jason Rolf stands.
The Pevensey Bay Journal in September 2018 said, “The excitement about what might happen is palpable. Of course so much will be determined by the outcome of any planning applications, but in theory at this stage we are seeing a project that is a once in a generation opportunity for Pevensey to see significant economic benefit”.
