West Hoe pier in Plymouth closed for repairs
Repair and stabilisation work at the popular West Hoe pier in Plymouth means it will be closed for the next six weeks and again next spring
The popular West Hoe pier in Plymouth will be closed for the next six weeks and again next spring while repair and stabilisation work is carried out.
It’s part of Plymouth City Council’s plan to secure its waterfront assets.
Cllr Chris Penberthy (Lab, St Peter and the Waterfront) told a council cabinet meeting on Monday that the sale of historic buildings like Pounds House mansion in Central Park and the 16th century Merchant’s House, which are both listed but have become liabilities for the authority, would ensure that it could invest in historic structures like West Hoe pier in the future.
The pier is where Sir Francis Chichester landed in 1967 becoming the first person to sail single handedly around the world.
Built in the 1880s, the Grade II listed structure has been subject to many repairs over the years because of continuous wave action.
The council fenced off an arm of the pier as a safety measure earlier this summer ahead of stabilisation work.
Cllr Penbethy said: “We have been monitoring the pier for some time and as we have done those explorations we have discovered that the pierhead is more fragile than the external appearance would show.
“So we are stabilising the pierhead at this stage, repointing out pier walls before more intrusive work can begin which will involve digging into the pier and refilling the voids that have been created by the sea as well as constructing three concrete bands to add more stability.”
He said the six weeks had been estimated for closure but this would depend on the tide and weather.
“Given the scale of the work there will be a second more expansion programme for next spring once we are through the winter storm period,” he said.
Another asset to be refurbished will be The Prince Christian Victor Memorial on Plymouth Hoe, dedicated to a grandson of Queen Victoria who died of typhoid fever during the Second Boer War.
The striking 12 metre pink obelisk with bronze panels also commemorates the officers, non-commissioned officers and men of the Gloucestershire, Somerset and Devonshire Regiments who fell during the Boer War 1899 to 1902.
The monument will be stripped back, cleaned and treated as part of a restoration programme.
Cllr Penberthy said he was pleased that these investments were being made and there would be more to come.
He said the council would be moving towards the next phase in the disposal of Pounds House in the next couple of weeks and the evaluation of bids for Merchant’s House, one of the city’s oldest buildings, was also concluding.
Plymouth City Council said it had no use for these buildings and no funding to restore them. Pounds House had cost taxpayers nearly £500,000 over five years to maintain, insure and secure.
“Whilst it is sad to lose historic assets we need to look at holding and capital costs of all sites because we cannot afford to invest in West Hoe Pier and the Boer Memorial if we are holding buildings as part of a bigger process,” said the councillor.