Brighton and Hove City Council has approved plans for a replacement shopfront at 157-163 Western Road, the former Argos store that has been vacant since 2020. The application, submitted by Moretons Investments, will see the existing frontage replaced with new double-glazed shopfront windows and a slimmer fascia along the Western Road and Spring Street elevations. The unit was previously occupied by Argos (Image: Google)The building will remain in commercial use. They said the proposals would remove the "large, deep Argos fascia board" and restore proportions closer to the building's original 1920s appearance. Planning documents describe it as part of Western Road's historic department store quarter, once referred to as Brighton's "Oxford Street-by-the-Sea."