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Watersplash plan must be amended
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The unique atmosphere created by its scale, its scenic sweep, its rare ecological treasures and its simple, unsophisticated amenities makes it an old-fashioned oasis of peace in an ever more stressful and crowded Island.
In recognition of those qualities, the States displayed rare levels of wisdom and foresight 30 years ago when they designated the bay and its hinterland as ‘a special place’, deserving of the highest level of protection from excessive or inappropriate development.
For all those reasons, the current plan for the redevelopment of the Watersplash must be considered a non-starter. There is no doubt that the long-established beach bar and nightclub is overdue for a revamp, but it is difficult to see how the proposal by its new owners, the Seymour Group, to double the area of beach front it occupies in order to create room for an indoor wave-riding machine, along with a shopping area and tourist accommodation as well as revamped eating, drinking and dancing areas, could be achieved without compromising the integrity of the bay area.
Immediate and vociferous opposition to the Seymour plan came from the Island’s surfing community, who, while they may be open to accusations of élitism and self-interest, can also claim authority as guardians of the surf culture which is such an important part of Jersey life and also has such great potential in terms of economic diversification. After a period of reflection, that opposition has now been joined, crucially, by the National Trust for Jersey, who have told the would-be developers that their plan’s ‘immense scale’ can only be of long-term detriment to the bay.
Behind the experts stand thousands of individual Islanders desperately concerned about the implications for the whole of St Ouen’s Bay if the current Watersplash plan is not conclusively rebuffed by the planning authorities.
It would perhaps be better if the Seymour Group – a Jersey company with an exemplary record of reinvestment in the tourism industry – were to volunteer a greatly scaled-down version of the renovation plan, recognising that this time their ambition is out of keeping with the area, deeply unpopular and potentially disastrous as the thin end of a wedge of further development applications that would surely follow and destroy the bay’s character.
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