A hated hoarding surrounding an axed seafront development will be taken down early next year, council bosses have revealed.

The "enormous" structure at the Princes Parade site in Hythe cost £300,000 to install on land destined for 150 homes, leisure centre and hotel.

However, the controversial plan was pulled by the new administration at Folkestone and Hythe District Council (FHDC) – with a Green-Lib Dem coalition taking over following the election in May.

Now, with a budget of almost £100,000 earmarked for the removal of the hoardings and installation of a fence, the council has put out the project for tender.

According to planning documents, the estimated start date for the contract is March 19, 2024.

The project is expected to last less than two weeks, ending on March 31.

Works on the former landfill site have been mired in controversy for years due to ballooning costs and fierce opposition campaigns.

Planning permission for the ditched development was extended by three years in April to allow for “proper conversations to be had” about restoring the site, new council leader Jim Martin (Green) said.

The bright white barriers - previously covered in graffiti calling it a “Tory crime scene” and slated as looking like Belfast’s “peace walls” - require £30,000 worth of annual maintenance, and the previous Conservative-led council received a quote of £100,000 to remove them.

Following discussions and the official axing of the project, a total of £92,060 of the existing budget has now been earmarked for the removal project.

The council’s deputy leader, Cllr Tim Prater (Lib Dem), told the authority’s cabinet in July: “This is a first and very large step in the direction that we are seeking as an administration – this will get the hoardings down.

“We will get the hoarding down around Princes Parade as soon as we can.”

He explained that funding was needed to survey the site, assess its safety, and keep any unsafe areas fenced off.

A council report details that, in December, the company which provided the hoardings said it could buy them back for £47,000.

But the papers stated: “This quotation will need to be updated as the hoarding is now older and in a worse condition than at the time of the quotation.”

In the summer, Hythe town councillor Ed Curran made the Belfast comparison, saying the “enormous” hoarding was an “unacceptable scar on the landscape”.

FHDC Leader Cllr Jim Martin said: “One of my first commitments after being elected was to have those hoardings removed so I’m glad we’re now getting to a position where we can make that happen.

“We’ve spent the last few months finding out more about the site. We’re putting up a

perimeter fence to prevent residents from coming into contact with the contamination found in the soil at relatively shallow depths.

“The new fencing will ensure our residents remain safe, which is always the main priority of this council. It will also restore the unrivalled vistas and protect the biodiversity and ecology of the location.”