Sea sports plan sparks protest

Herbrand Walk Developments, which owns land at Herbrand Walk near the Cooden Beach Hotel, submitted the application to Rother District council on March 27.

Plans include 20 new beach huts, which would be of wood and double sized at 10ft wide by 8ft long, space for 100 cars, a new entrance/driveway onto the beach to provide access for jet skis, boats and windsurfers, bollarding the entire beach 2.4 metres from the side of the road and tidying up of existing kerbing.

The owner, Steve Hall, proposes to provide two free-of-charge car parks, one at either end of the beach, employ a lifeguard and a jet ski instructor between April 1 and September 30 each year, and have a portable winch on site so jet skis and boats can be launched safely.

Other activities would include rowing, wind surfing, fishing, kayaking and kite flying, and there would be 10 refuse bins and four doggy bins, which would be emptied daily.

In a letter to Rother District Council, which is published on the council's website, Mr Hall said: "The benefits would be an increase of trade for the local amenities, more visitors to Bexhill town centre, the area would be tidy and secure, travellers will be unable to set up camp as in previous years and the involvement of local schools - free days, with training in all activities."

However the application has received almost 100 online responses, many of which are objections, and the Observer's postbag this week has contained several letters of complaint.

Joey and Robert Mitchell, of Cooden Sea Road, branded the plans a "disaster", fearing increased noise from jet skis and increased traffic gridlock at Herbrand Walk in the summer.

They said: "What an extraordinary place it is - the beach is replenished routinely by the Environment Agency. Were that not done there would be no land.

"Effectively, this is already public land, maintained at public expense by the replenishment of its beach.

"It cannot be treated as yet another development opportunity to benefit only some of the public."

Valerie Hamilton, of Clavering Walk, Cooden, said: "Should the increased use of extremely noisy, smelly, polluting jet skis be encouraged in this eco-friendly environment?

"The beach is separated by the mere width of railway line from both a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a RAMSAR site."

Melanie Sykes, who has owned one of the existing beach huts for more than 30 years, told the Observer she was keen to have as many people know about the proposal as possible '“ she claimed the planning notices had disappeared from the site but have now been replaced.

Peter Hill, of Cooden Sea Road, objected on the Rother District Council website. He said: "The noise from the jet skis that currently use the sea in this area is an intrusion on the peace and quiet that I should be enjoying, during the spring and summer months, in my garden. The proposal that many more jet skis will be using this area cannot be allowed, as it will spoil the enjoyment of many hundreds of residents in the area.

"This area of beach is peaceful and unspoilt and this is the attraction that brings many people to the area.

"A development of this kind would be a total disaster."

Mr Hall told the Observer there was already space for 100 cars at Herbrand Walk and that he was merely formalising the parking arrangements. He also said the idea behind a qualified jetski instructor was as a safety measure to ensure jetski users had the correct insurance and paperwork.

He said: "I do not want to make it into a holiday camp or anything. I just want it so people can enjoy it still and it will be tidy and safe."

Rother District Council head of planning Tim Hickling said: "Officers are currently constructing their report on this application and the recommendation will go before a future planning committee.

"It would be quite wrong to comment on the application in the media before it appears in front of councillors and risk prejudicing the decision making process. Members of the committee will make their decision, based on planning grounds, on the evidence available to them.

"The council is aware the application has generated a large amount of correspondence.

"Any comments on the proposal can be sent through either looking at the application online at www.rother.gov.uk , emailing [email protected] or writing to the head of planning at the Town Hall, Bexhill."

The closing date for comments on this application is May 12.

'¢ To see what parking, activities and water quality standard already exists at Herbrand Walk, visit www.goodbeachguide.co.uk