Featured image: Chilling on top of East Slope by Liam Evans
Perhaps the best-loved and most iconic halls at the University of Sussex’s Falmer campus are set to be re-developed this year – and the university is bidding them goodbye with a bang!
East Slope halls have stood proudly in place since the 1970s, and are home to around 600 fun-loving students at any one time.
The housing site is also home to the hugely popular East Slope Bar, which has been a meeting place and watering hole for generations of students. It’s a place filled with fun memories, cheap drinks, and live music – one student even penned a love letter to the bar.
The East Slope Alumni Farewell Party, which will take place this June, gives alumni the chance to let their hair down, have a few drinks, and reminisce about fond memories of East Slope with friends and former flatmates. A gallery of photos taken throughout these much-loved buildings’ lifetime will also be on display.
It’s not all quiet reflection, though; one of the resident DJs from Patterns will be mixing sounds from the 70s, 80s, and 90s, and themed cocktails will be flowing all night long.
Students often ask why East Slope is being replaced when it’s been so fondly received. A statement from the university said: “The current buildings date back to the early 1970s and are now reaching the end of their life. We also want to ensure we develop our student residences to take into account any increase in student numbers in the coming years.
“Current and former students often speak affectionately about their time living in East Slope, as well as its flaws. East Slope, which houses around 600 students, was built in the 1970s and is expensive to maintain. We believe we can recapture some of the atmosphere of the current East Slope in the designs for the new residences.”
The East Slope accommodation and bar are scheduled to be replaced with new housing, Students’ Union building and shops, with completion planned for 2020. The development will provide about 1,400 extra bedrooms.
For full details of the East Slope Alumni Farewell Party, click here.
If you’re feeling extra nostalgic, we’ve also compiled some of the best old photos from Sussex University for your viewing pleasure.
