A reminder that the Pier has suffered severe storm damage and is in poor condition. We have commissioned a Structural Engineer whose design to reinforce the existing structure and add a new concrete wall to the seaward faces has now received planning consent. The cost estimate for this work is £1.25 million.
After another winter of storms, it’s not only the Prince of Wales Pier that needs attention. We have noticed a crack forming in the main quay on the west side of the storm gate. Also, the low tide jetty (known as the outer plats) beyond the beach is in urgent need of repairs.
In December we submitted a business case to Cornwall Council for a £1.1 million grant from the Shared Prosperity Fund as a major contribution towards restoration of the Prince of Wales Pier. This has been through 3 reviews with one more to go and we remain hopeful of a positive outcome. Thanks to Armand Toms our acting District Councillor for his support through this activity.
Importantly, if we do get an offer from Cornwall Council it will be conditional on PHT guaranteeing to contribute £50,000 to the project. Another condition would be that the money must be spent before the end of March 2025. For us this effectively means that we would need to complete the work before the end of autumn because it’s too risky trying to do the work during the winter.
So, we don’t have time to raise the £50,000 that Cornwall council requires us to guarantee before they will make an offer (unless someone out there is feeling generous).
The Trustees have decided to commit the funds from our deposit account intended for emergency response and to raise the money to replace this. Doing this will all but wipe out our reserves so it’s really important that we recover the funds. Please see the link to the fundraiser at the end of this note.
We have also held discussions with the Environment Agency and are working with them to raise the £100,000+ needed to get to the target of £1.25m. They have been very helpful, and we are currently working with them to prepare a different business case for this amount.
Our longstanding discussions with South West Water took a positive turn recently. We are now optimistic that we will get a contribution that we will put towards the outer plats work which needs to start as soon as possible and also towards the £50,000 fundraiser.
A big reality check will be when the work is tendered to the specialist contractors. We have decided to include the repairs to the main quay as part of the scope. If we can either raise more money or get some competitive quotes it would be ideal to do this at the same time.
So, the next steps are to conclude the grant applications and to progress with the detailed designs and preparation of contract documents. If all goes well the work will start in the summer.
We need to run another survey of people’s opinions which is a part of the Cornwall Grant process. We will also have an open day at the Harbour office, probably in May for people to see the proposals and make comments.
In the meantime, our priority is to raise PHTs contribution of £50,000. We are hoping that we can support some fund raisers in the village (big thanks to the Plantation Café who have made donations from two of their excellent quiz nights). If you have any ideas for fund raising or can help in any way, please get in touch.
Please take a look at our video and if you can contribute to the appeal the Trustees would be very grateful.
