South Quay Moves Forward.

With the announcement on the 14th of March that the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government would not ‘call in’ ING’s South Quay application, the project moves into a new phase. So, is everything settled? Well, not everything – and Hayle residents will be called upon to give their views.

The two main issues that will go to consultation are: should the footbridge between Penpol Terrace and South Quay be half way along or at the Philp’s Pasty end?; and, the harbour and a fair bit of land will be gifted to Hayle – how should it be managed?

Over the last year, the Hayle Harbour Trust has been engaged with ING to negotiate as much land being transferred to Hayle as possible and has managed to get some significant additions, such as East Quay and parts of Lelant Quay, brought into the discussion. With the likelihood of a World Heritage Site levy (an annual charge on property being constructed on and around the harbour) giving a stable income to help support the harbour and land, taking over management and operation of the harbour looks like a promising and sustainable possibility for Hayle.

This is extremely exciting, as so little has been done to develop the harbour in recent decades.

There are some great ideas being pursued, including: developing the facilities on East Quay to support fishing, provide a wet fish market and a fish restaurant; providing facilities for Wave Hub support vessels; restoring the old town beach on the Spit opposite Lelant Quay and the old foot crossing to St. Uny; use of Lelant Quay for boat storage and maintenance and, perhaps, a water sports centre; provision of a water taxi between Hayle, Lelant and St. Ives; upgrading Cockle Bank to provide wet moorings for larger vessels; fish spawning pools; and general clean up and interpretation of the World Heritage Site – to name a few.

Business plans and funding applications are already under way with support from Cornwall Council and Cornwall Development Company.

So how should this be managed for the benefit of Hayle? Cornwall Council has drafted a list of seven options, each of which has pros and cons. When the details are finalised they will be presented to the town and feedback collected.

The options at the draft stage are:

1. Do nothing–ING continues to own and operate the harbour authority;

2. Transfer ownership to a new private company, perhaps with some Hayle directors;

3. Become a Trust Port as defined by the Department for Transport;

4. Become a Municipal Port under the control of Cornwall Council;

5. Incorporate a new company with Cornwall Council as sole shareholder;

6. Form a Community Interest Company and

7. Transfer to a charitable company limited by guarantee & controlled by a local stakeholder group.

As you can imagine there are lots of pros and cons to these options and they will be explained and debated at length.

The important thing is for Hayle to get its harbour back after having been in the hands of ‘outsiders’ for too long. Read more at www.hayleharbourtrust.org.uk.

John Bennett

Chairman, Hayle Harbour Trust Ltd.