Weymouth Harbour Wall works will see Pavilion parking temporarily closed
The Dorset Council project could last for up to a year
Works on two Weymouth harbour walls will lead to a temporary loss of car parking adjacent to the Pavilion – which could last for a year.
The massive project will involve installing new walls made of sheet piles in front of the existing crumbling structures and upgrading footpaths.
Public comments on the planning and design proposals are now being invited in readiness for a 2025 start on the works.
The scheme for the two walls are part of a larger project to protect the harbour with estimated total costs of up to £10.5m; £6.5m from the £19.5m Levelling Up money awarded to Dorset Council last year.
The remainder will be funded by Dorset Council and the Weymouth Harbour Authority.
The two walls, F & G, start at the Pleasure Pier and continue towards the beach steps, skirting past the Pavilion.
They were last worked on in 1977 by the former Weymouth and Portland Borough Council and together stretch to almost 500 metres, the entire length suffering from corrosion with holes in many areas.
Parts of the seaward wall have been fenced off for safety reasons with a 5 metre water exclusion zone in place in case of sudden collapse.
The new sheeting will be topped with concrete capping, with the gap between the new sheets and the existing wall to be filled by what is described as ‘inert material.’
A consultant’s report, for Dorset Council, says the walls are in very poor condition with a ‘significant loss’ of the existing steel sheet thickness with holes allowing infill material to be washed out, leading in 2022, to the development of a sinkhole along the footpath close to the wall.
Some of the piling was estimated to only have a five-year life at the time of a 2018 inspection.
The new sheeting will have a design life of 75 years as part of the wider development of the Peninsula area with the new walls higher to protect the Peninsula from predicted sea level rises until the year 2100.
Once the main construction work is complete, a raised public walkway will be built behind them to ensure the panoramic views over the walls are maintained.
Part of the works will include fitting new safety ladders along the length of both walls.
During the works a temporary compound will be established within the commercial port area with all of the works being undertaken from the land with what is described as ‘minimal’ disturbance to the seabed.
Parts of the car park and footpaths will be closed while the work takes place with existing handrails and fencing having to be removed to allow machinery access for the piling work.
The project is expected to take place between the spring and autumn of 2025, over ten to 12 months, with construction hours limited to between 7.00am and 7.00pm Monday to Friday and from 8.00am to 1.00pm on Saturdays, with no working on Sundays or Bank Holidays.
Noise from the project is said to be within acceptable levels although when work is taking place close to the beach and nearby hotels only one piling rig will be used at any time.
Material to be taken from the site is expected to be mainly removed by lorry although an investigation will be carried out to see if a barge could be used as an alternative to save lorry movements through the town.
Dorset Council is currently seeking planning consent for the works with public comments on the proposals remaining open until November 8th.
To date the only reaction to the proposal has come from Melcombe Regis ward councillor Cllr Jon Orrell who comments:
“Repair and improvement of all our sea walls is increasingly urgent due to climate chaos, global heating and sea level rises.”
The first phase of the work will start on the wall closest to the beach by The Pavilion.
To provide contractors and their machinery with a safe working area temporary traffic lights will be in place opposite The Pavilion forecourt.
Access to and from The Pavilion car park will be restricted to one lane and a small section of the beach which hugs the harbour wall will be closed to the public for this phase of the work.
These restrictions are expected to be in place until the end of May 2025.