Clearing fog on the Waterfront

We have been told that the unpublished report, commissioned by the Treasury, says that taxpayers could end up footing a bill for £50 million in connection with the Esplanade project. With this in mind, it is hardly surprising that Deputy Le Fondré is suspicious about a previous administration’s motives for failing to come clean about what consultants King Sturge had to say.

It must, however, be emphasised that the present Treasury Minister, Senator Philip Ozouf, vehemently rejects the assertion that the taxpayer could be forced to foot a huge bill. Indeed, he says that development could yield public benefits amounting to many millions of pounds.

But in spite of the Senator’s confidence, many will feel that all available information concerning this prominent site should be on the table – although it is fair to say that that events have moved on dramatically since 2008. The proposed development is now much smaller than initially envisaged,

government has parted company with the organisation which was formerly the preferred developer, and the States of Jersey Development Company is limbering up to take on the job.

But there have been other changes which might mean that though the secret report could still be informative, its relevance has been severely undermined. Since 2008 the world has seen a major recession and Jersey has experienced a fall in demand for the sort of facilities promised as central features of the remodelled Esplanade.

More importantly, another player eager not for involvement in the States-backed plan but to launch its own prestige redevelopment of the Broad Street area has appeared on the scene.

Although Deputy Le Fondré undoubtedly has principle on his side, the make-or-break for what its proponents would like to call the Esplanade Quarter is likely to be defined not by a hypothetical £50 million bombshell for taxpayers but by competition from the Broad Street scheme, the extent to which the economy recovers and realistic assessments of the medium- and long-term demand for top-quality office space.