One person was on the site at the time and he was forcibly removed from the squatted building. By 4am the garden had been razed to the ground - planters smashed, newly planted pots smashed garden furniture smashed. Metal hoardings are now up and security patrolling the site.

There will be a meeting at the Patch (William Clarke Park left off Franklin Road going up the hill) at 7pm to look at options.

Bailiffs and security were asked to leave plants and furniture outside the fence so it could be returned to local residents, families and kids. In the last two weeks money was raised to buy in plants and local schoolkids had been planting their own.

Thanks to Brighton Council officers acting hand-in-glove with the developers with a flawed consultation programme and planning permission nodded through when half the councillors were on holiday the garden is now taken by the developers and a planned Tesco, betting shop and seven flats could go ahead. There is already a Spar accross the road a CO-op literally next door and a Sainsburies up the road 200 metres. Who does well in a recession - supermarkets and betting shops. As for the flats all new flats along this road have been told not to open lower windows because of the EC reg breaking polltuion levels.

And all this on the site of an old petrol station - derelict for five years - which was guerilla-gardened in May 2009 and has been a green haven along the heavily polluted Lewes Road for 17 months.

Fight Tesco, Fight for Green Space in Brighton! Gardens not supermarkets People not Profit!

Put Communities First!