proposals to redevelop the former Water’s Edge Hotel in Bouley Bay and replace it with a luxury home have been recommended for approval by the Planning Department.
The controversial plans are due to be put before the Planning Committee next week, who will have the final say on whether the scheme is approved.
Proposals to revamp the site include demolishing the dilapidated hotel and building a luxury home with guest and staff accommodation, as well as constructing a new dive centre and café.
In recommending the scheme, the Planning officer’s report said: ‘The new development represents a significant reduction in floor area and built form when compared to the existing hotel and the approved development. In addition, there would also be a significant reduction in the amount of excavation required compared to the approved scheme.
‘Architecturally, the design of the new development, with its series of heavily-landscaped tiers, progressively set in from the edges of the site, is considered to be far more sympathetic with regard to its overall appearance and landscape impact compared to both the existing hotel and the approved scheme,’ they added.
The officer has also attached a number of stipulations, should the scheme be approved, including a commitment to guarantee the dive centre’s long-term future, as well as provide a temporary centre during development.
They also recommend that access to the cliff path and surrounding public land is guaranteed and there should be no interference with the Bouley Bay hill climb.
The Strategy and Innovation Team within the Strategic Policy, Planning and Performance department recently stated that they believed the scheme would result in an ‘improvement to the character of the local landscape and seascape’ and bring in ‘significant aesthetic and environmental improvements’.
In a submission by the Strategy and Innovation Team to the application on the government’s Planning website, they said: ‘The proposals would undoubtedly result in an improvement to the character of the local landscape and seascape as well as bringing in significant aesthetic and environmental improvements.
‘Accordingly, the proposals can, as a matter of principle, be supported by the policies of the Bridging Island Plan.’
