Six weeks after the charity made a bid for three fields in Pine Walk on the shoreline of St Catherine’s Bay, its offer of £120,200 was last week accepted by Infrastructure Minister Kevin Lewis.
Trust chief executive Charles Alluto said they were very grateful to the kind benefactor – who wishes to remain anonymous – for agreeing to cover the acquisition costs.
‘When such sensitive areas of coastline come onto the market, the National Trust is in a unique position to be able to offer permanent landscape protection, public benefit, and in the longer term, enhanced biodiversity,’ he said.
‘This has an enormous value, beyond monetary, which will help to deliver both our aims as a conservation organisation and the States of Jersey’s strategic vision of safeguarding and enhancing our natural environment.’
He went on to thank the charity’s many other supporters, including several States Members, who he says also recognised the value of safeguarding a beautiful area of coastline.
Deputy Lewis would not reveal whether the successful bid was the highest received, but he previously said he was not required to accept the highest, or any bid.
‘I am delighted to be able to pass this land on to the National Trust for Jersey as part of our coastal heritage so it will be protected in perpetuity for the people of Jersey,’ Deputy Lewis said.
The news has eased the disappointment of three weeks ago when the National Trust lost out to a higher bidder in the sale of duneland between Le Braye Café and El Tico in St Ouen’s Bay. On that occasion the trust made an offer of £260,020 after receiving donations from more than 70 Islanders in ten days. The land had been valued at between £200,000 and £250,000.
Who bought the land and how much was paid for it remains unknown.
The 11 vergées of prime early potato-growing land on either side of Pine Walk were expected to fetch between £77,000 and £99,000 based on the current price of farmland. The sale also includes the landmark pine trees that line the road.
Although the land is designated for agricultural use, and as part of Jersey’s Coastal National Park is currently subject to the Island’s toughest planning controls that forbid all new development, fears had been expressed that such regulations may not necessarily be so rigidly applied in the future.
The JEP understands there were concerns from people in the area that the land could be acquired by a wealthy resident living nearby and be taken out of cultivation with a further loss to the agricultural industry of prime farming land.
The news of the St Catherine’s land sale has been welcomed by Mike Stentiford, of the Jersey National Park group, who has been campaigning to protect the Island’s coastline from development for over 20 years.
‘What a tremendous outcome it is that Pine Walk in St Catherine’s Bay is now under the totally reliable stewardship of the National Trust for Jersey,’ he said.
‘The generosity shown in attaining such an environmentally sensitive achievement is something that will surely be genuinely appreciated by many Islanders.’
Once contracts have been passed, Mr Alluto said the trust would undertake work to prolong the life of the landmark pine trees and would be seeking a tenant for the fields.
