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Walkers use the path for the first time on 1st February 2010 |
The route leading from Beach Road down to Crinnis and then heading across the Cornwall Coliseum site has at last been re-opened as a public right of way.
This route has been blocked by the developers since 2004, with the only access to Crinnis being via more than 80 steep steps down the side of the cliff. Its reopening follows years of hard work by local footpath campaigners Gloria Price and Frances Taylor (who were given help and advice by the Open Spaces Society), to have several paths in and around the beaches officially recognised on County maps.
On 1st February a group of local people (despite the rain) walked down the road and across the site for the first time. The path in front of the old Coliseum building has been cleared of rubble and flattened to provide a level and safe walking surface.
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Access to the beach is still blocked |
Unfortunately, as this photo shows, the path comes to an abrupt halt at a line of fencing and access to the beach is still blocked by the developer. But Ampersand says it will open the last section down to the foreshore once it has been made safe. They say it will be open seven days a week but closed at night and for maintenance or when weather conditions make it dangerous.
Meanwhile campaigners are now trying to get that section of the route established as a public right of way as well so that access to the beach will not be reliant on permission from the developers.
(More on how the right of way is being blocked by the unauthorised sea wall)
The re-opening of the route followed notice being served on the developers by Cornwall Council to remove obstructions and barriers on the path by 31st January.
The application included published evidence that proved how the route was used for generations. The closure of the route by the developer in 2004 denied this access by visitors and local people alike.
All except a very few metres of the route has now been added to the Definitive Footpath Map. Mrs. Price and Mrs. Taylor both made application in December 2009 for the remaining section of the path to also be added to the map and served official notice on the Council and landowner.
Link to Rights of Way Order on Cornwall Council site
22nd NOVEMBER 2010: WALL MAY STAY UNTIL JULY 2011
The unauthorised rock armour and metal shuttering which has disfigured the beaches at Carlyon Bay for six years may not be removed until next summer - despite a legal requirement for it to go by 8th December 2010. The developer is to seek permission from Cornwall Council to delay the removal until next year pending the submission of a new planning application for the development of a 511-unit holiday resort. In another example of the way local opinion is held in contempt, only a few months ago CEG said it was only delaying removing the wall until after the 2010 summer season because it didn't want to close the beach during the summer holidays. Yet the order to remove the wall was given three years ago with a deadline of this December - it seems clear that they never had any intention of complying with the order and have delayed and delayed until they can use the excuse of a new planning application to keep it beyond the deadline.
Also despite the wishes of most local people, the developer is still pressing ahead with plans to put tennis courts and other "leisure" facilities on Polgaver. In a recent survey conducted by local Cornwall Councillor John Oxenham, more than 80% wanted Polgaver to be left to nature and half wanted no development on Shorthorn. But a public exhibition of the latest proposals held at the "Beach" information office showed tennis courts and other leisure facilities on Polgaver and multi-storey buildings on Shorthorn.
9th NOVEMBER 2010: COAST PATH "ILLEGALLY BLOCKED"
Footpath campaigners claim that part of the South West Coast Path at Carlyon Bay has been blocked by the developers.
The Open Spaces Society (OSS) has backed local member Gloria Price who says the route has been partially blocked on the top car park above Crinnis beach by fencing and a portacabin. Mrs Price has been campaigning for many years to get the obstructions removed. (More on Mrs Price's campaign.)
The OSS says: "We have written to Cornwall Council’s rights-of-way department, urging it to take legal action to remove the obstructions. The South West Coast Path National Trail is a very special path which is used and enjoyed by thousands of people each year.
Cornwall Council has a legal duty to ensure this path is open to its full width and in good order. The path has been made narrow and offputting by the fencing and portacabin. They are a physical and a psychological barrier to the public.
In a recent case in the High Court concerning a gateway which partially blocked a footpath in Somerset, the judge ruled that the public was entitled to use and enjoy the full width of the path.
Says Gloria Price: "The South West Coast Path (footpath 36) has been obstructed by the developer, and while we have been writing to Cornwall Council since 2004, no action has been taken by the council properly to resolve this matter. It needs to be resolved urgently, for the future of public access in Cornwall."
Do you use the South West Coast Path? Post your comments or email us.
26th OCTOBER 2010: BEACH CAR PARK REOPENED
The car park which was opened at the far end of Crinnis beach during the summer has been opened again for the winter. This is yet another indication that the developer, CEG, has no intention of complying with the Enforcement Notice ordering them to remove the unauthorised shuttering and rock armour by 8th December. They claimed back in the summer that, having moved the shuttering at Shorthorn, they would not start work on the Crinnis section so that people could use the beach during the holidays. They said work would start on the Crinnis section after the holidays were over. Now it's clear that they planned all along to delay any work until just before the deadline before announcing they were applying for permission to retain the "wall". (See Jon Kenny's quote below).
Around 250 new homes will be added to the hundreds already built at Charlestown and Duporth. Hundreds more are planned at Par Docks, more than 1,000 by Wainhomes on the northern edge of St Austell and the thousands more proposed by the so-called eco-town development, which will also reach to the northern edge of the town.
Serious concerns have been expressed at local parish council meetings about these plans and are being passed on to Cornwall Council planners. Councillors say they also fear it is more and more likely the Carlyon Bay beaches will be largely closed off to local people who have used them for decades.
Meanwhile, the Cornish Guardian has reported on CEG's move to defy the Enforcement Notice and apply to retain the unauthorised shuttering and rock armour which should be removed by 8th December. (See below). The paper quoted Jon Kenny of CEG as saying: "We realise that some people will be disappointed by this but I'd like to emphasise that we would intend to remove it by next summer. If we get a consent, we'll move it to where the new wall is going to be and if not, we'll take it away as we have in Shorthorn." (Read the full article here)
Roy Bennett, CBW's chairman, has called the move "outrageous" and Carlyon Bay Watch will be pushing for Cornwall Council to reject any such application.
11th OCTOBER 2010: DEVELOPER DEFYING WALL ORDER
Carlyon Bay Watch's fears that the developer will refuse to remove the unauthorised shuttering and rock armour which has disfigured Carlyon Bay's beaches for the last six years seem justified. Local parish councillors have been told that CEG will submit a planning application for the retention of the wall - they say on a temporary basis while the new planning application for the whole site is decided.
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The Sandy river once again meandering across the beach after tons of rocks hemming it in were removed |
The developer has been working on dismantling part of the illegal shuttering and rock armour which has been blocking the beach since 2004 (they have been forced to do so because of an Enforcement Notice which demands its removal by 7th December 2010). As part of the work, thousands of tons of rock and sand have been piled at the back of Shorthorn beach and the beach profile around the Sandy River has been levelled out (is this work in a tidal zone legal?).
Without the huge boulders of rock armour which were used to try to force the river in a straight line down the beach (and which made trying to cross it so hazardous) it has resumed its previous habit of meandering across the beach.
But at least for the summer season, visitors can park on the beach and enjoy it as far as that is possible - although the shuttering will remain on the Crinnis section. That is due to be removed during the autumn - we watch and wait!
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Rocks are being removed from the river outfall |
So, faced with this order to remove the entire wall, they are once again riding roughshod over public opinion by starting on it only months before the deadline and then trying to wriggle out of the rest of their obligations. (Presumably they are working on the assumption that their planning application will be successful.)
Meanwhile, local residents have received letters saying the work is likely to take 10 weeks and parts of Shorthorn will be closed to the public for safety reasons at times. The developers also say they will try to provide temporary parking near Shorthorn in time for the start of the summer season at the end of July.
Heavy lifting equipment will be brought in via Charlestown Road, Church Road and Beach Road - although they say they will avoid busy times.
17th FEBRUARY 2010: LAST SECTION OF PATH OPEN TO THE BEACH
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Despite the sign, a bridge over the shuttering extends the footpath onto the foreshore |
Visitors to the beaches, it seems, are not being encouraged to use the newly reopened path. A sign, rather sternly, marks the end of the current right of way and doesn't invite anyone to walk on and cross the bridge. There are no signs at the top of the road explaining that it is now everyone's right to walk down if they wish. So anyone who wants to use Crinnis beach - remember you can now walk down the road and across the site, you don't have to climb up and down the steps.
(Go to our Public Access page for more details and background)
16th DECEMBER 2009: RAIL ARCH LISTED
English Heritage has given the railway arch at Cypress Avenue a Grade II listing.
The arch was designed by Victorian engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel during the construction of the rail line between Penzance and Paddington. It was built between 1846 and 1859 when it opened. It allowed access to the Tregehan estate along Cypress Avenue and has been acknowleged by English Heritage as a special example because, unlike some others, it has survived unchanged. (More on the Brunel Arch)
15th DECEMBER 2009: COUNCIL ACTS ON FOOTPATH
Cornwall Council has acted swiftly to get the route from Beach Road down to Crinnis re-opened as a public right of way. Footpath campaigner Gloria Price has been told by the Council's Highways Authority that the route has been inspected and notice will be served on Ampersand to remove the various obstructions.
The Council's action follows the confirmation of the route as a public right of way by the Planning Inspectorate a week ago. Just days after that
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The obstructed route at Crinnis - photo courtesy of Peter Price who walked down with a security guard |
news, local resident Peter Price noticed that "No Public Access" signs had been put up on the fence across Beach Road. He decided to try walking down the road but was stopped by security guards, who said that anyone who wished to walk down the path had to be accompanied by a guard because of safety issues. However he was told that the developers intended to make the route safe, so we wait to see what happens to the demolition rubble strewn across the route.
7th DECEMBER 2009: PUBLIC FOOTPATH RULING UPHELD
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Barrier was erected across the road down to Crinnis in 2004 |
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The route from Beach Road down to Crinnis and across the former Cornwall Coliseum site has been confirmed as a public right of way following an examination of the issues by the Planning Inspectorate. Cornwall County Council decided in 2008 that the route was offically a public footpath but Ampersand decided to appeal. A Public Inquiry into the issue had been scheduled for 8th September but Ampersand withdrew its objections at the last moment. The route has been blocked by fences and gates for a number of years by the developer. Footpath campaigner Gloria Price, whose hard work has led to this and two other rights of way on the Carlyon Bay golf course to be officially recognised, says she will now ask Cornwall Council to take steps to have the Beach Road route opened up to the public. CBW believes that since the developer has not a shred of valid planning permission for what's been built, and has been illegally obstructing this footpath for over five years, there is now a compelling legal, moral and social duty to remove the blockade immediately.
CARLYON BAY WATCH PRESS STATEMENT
(Our Public Access page has more background on this)
6th OCTOBER 2009: WHAT ARE THE PLANS FOR POLGAVER?
Two days before the opening of the public exhibition of the new proposals for the Beach, Carlyon Bay Watch has learned thats. Polgaver wasn't included in the previous planning applications but now there is a possibility that it could be used as a "leisure" area - may be tennis courts, children's play area etc. At a preview of the exhibition, CBW was told the developers are looking at a graduated approach - with a more "urban" look to the buildings on Crinnis, which would include underground car parking and the commercial units - restaurants, bars, shops etc. Shorthorn would have a "softer" look - with no cars and a sea defence made up of a sand bank reinforced by buried rock armour. But then we were told Polgaver could be the "leisure" area. CBW members expressed their shock at this - one said it would be "lighting the blue touchpaper". Jonathan Kenny of Commercial Estates Group said he would look again at this.
Members of the public can visit the information centre for the Beach development on Crinnis during the 8th, 9th and 10th October 2009 and see for themselves whether or not these new proposals are an improvement on the previous plans.
Like CBW, Carlyon Parish councillors have already been given a preview of the exhibition. However these are so far only proposals - there are no "plans" as such. We do not yet know the design of the buildings although the developers claim they are aiming for something more in keeping with Cornwall and its landscape. That at least is a step forward. They say they're aiming for a layering effect - such as you would see at Fowey where buildings climb up the sides of the estuary - by putting tall (i.e. four to six storey buildings at the back and graduating to the lower two to three storey blocks at the front). That is an improvement on the previous walls of concrete plans - but the issue of views from the coast path are still to be resolved.
They want to move the sea wall back from its present (illegal) position. But they don't know yet whether this is feasible - no tests and assessments have yet been carried out and Carlyon Bay Watch reiterates its long-held position that proper tests must be made on this beach - not assumptions made on the basis of computer modelling from data from beaches unlike this one. This beach is unique in its make-up and must be treated as such.
PARISH COUNCIL 'KEPT IN THE DARK' OVER PLANS
The new Carlyon Parish Council, which covers Carlyon Bay and Tregehan, met for the second time on 22nd September and revealed that it had not known about the negotiations going on between Cornwall Council officers and the developers behind the beach project. Despite Cornwall Council's promises of "transparency" the first Parish councillors knew of the existence of a Planning Performance Agreement (PPA) was after it had been drawn up. The Parish Council said it would be issuing a statement setting out its views. The impression given at the meeting was that there was a fair measure of annoyance at the lack of consultation during these discussions, particularly as the PPA was signed on 2nd June by both J Kenny of Commercial Estages Group, representing the developer, and Phil Mason, Cornwall Council's Head of Planning and Regeneration.
Parish councillors also listened to a plea from local resident Ken Stark to examine carefully the history of the planning dispute at the Carlyon Bay beaches and to consider Cornwall's heritage - its coastal areas.
Another resident, Peter Price, said if the new proposals resulted in a fresh planning application he didn't see how Cornwall Council could support it. He said that the old Restormel Borough Council had admitted that if the old 1990 scheme was proposed today, it would not be approved. (You can find out more about this on our page about the Planning history).
Mr Price said building residential property on a beach backed by a cliff and with only one access road flew in the face of government policy on flood defences, which were of managed retreat not advance.
Parish councillors will be examining the new proposals at a meeting with the developers in advance of the public exhibition which opens on 8th October at the Beach information centre.
Footpath
The council also discussed the public right of way which has been formally declared running from Beach Road down the access road to the seaward side of the old Coliseum. Gloria Price, who had made the original application to have the footpath declared, said she had requested to the Planning Inspectorate that it be extended out on to the beach itself. She was still waiting to hear the outcome. A barrier, erected by Ampersand, is still in place across the road. Parish Council chairman John Hermes said he had tried to walk down the road and was told by the guards that it wasn't a public footpath and no instructions had been made to open it. Another councillor, Roy Bennett, said he had been told they were waiting for instructions from Cornwall Council
The Parish Council said it would ask Cornwall Council to take "appropriate" steps to open the footpath. (Our Public Access page has more background on this)
Ampersand has come to a deal with Cornwall Council planning and development officers after months of discussions behind closed doors on how to salvage their flawed plans for the Carlyon Bay beaches.
New proposals for the development have been drawn up with the agreement of officers at the new unitary authority (Cornwall Council) - who just happen to be the very same individuals they dealt with at the now defunct Restormel Borough Council and who worked "hand in glove" with the developers throughout the 2006 Public Inquiry process.
The document drawn up is called Planning Performance Agreement for Development at Carlyon Bay agreed between Cornwall Council and Commercial Estates Group Ltd. - the company behind Ampersand. It was passed to the Council's Planning and Regeneration Service on 3rd June 2009.
The developers claim the new scheme will address matters raised by the Public Inquiry into the sea defences and to "produce a completely new scheme providing high quality visitor facilities focussed on the existing brownfield site and significantly reducing the impact on the undeveloped coast and secure a more sustainable approach to the provision of the sea defences".
They talk of the same 511 units but now refer to them as "residential" whereas before they were holiday units. They say they are looking at whether the development could be largely concentrated on Crinnis (i.e. the "existing brownfield site") with the rest on Shorthorn. In this at least they seem to have partly conceded Carlyon Bay Watch's consistent argument that any development should only be allowed on the old brownfield site occupied by the Coliseum complex. Of course, it also means that any development beyond that would be greenfield and therefore has many planning implications. The Council planning officers have apparently set a minimum of 70% being located on Crinnis.
They say there will be no beach recharge (a major factor in the report of the Public Inquiry inspector) and have appeared to accept CBW's figures on the 30,000 HGV trips needed to deliver the materials. Instead they are proposing to set a sea wall further back towards the cliffs.
CBW is deeply suspicious of the way these proposals have been drawn up and continues to believe that they are contrary to planning policies. The Planning Performance Agreement only describes outline proposals - detailed plans will follow if a full planning application is submitted.
PRESS RELEASE FROM CARLYON BAY WATCH 18TH September 2009
Carlyon Bay Watch, representing the residents of Carlyon Bay, are astonished and angry to find that the Planning Officers of the new Cornwall Council have secretly reached an accord with the developers at Carlyon Bay beaches, which appears, in many instances, to run contrary to local, regional and national planning policies.
These are the same officers who, within the now defunct Restormel Borough Council, and despite overwhelming opposition from local residents, have previously appeared to work "hand in glove" with, and sat "cheek by jowl" with the developers throughout a prolonged and contentious planning inquiry, spending exorbitant amounts of ratepayers' money in supporting the developer at every turn. The public inquiry, despite their combined efforts, found against them.
The fact that this latest accord with the developer was "signed off" whilst there were no councillors to consult, the district council having been dissolved and the new council elections not having taken place, raises serious concerns about the conduct of the planning process in Cornwall Council.
In view of this, the government must issue a Direction that Cornwall Council may not determine any planning application that results from this accord.
Any such plans that do not ensure that development is restricted to the old brownfield site of the Coliseum, not extending beyond the previously developed part of Crinnis Beach, and are environmentally sensitive, proportionate, safe and sustainable, must be subject to a full public inquiry.
It must be noted that the former Cornwall County Council and the Environment Agency both supported the stated aims of Carlyon Bay Watch at the four-week public inquiry in 2006 and Cornwall County Council, consistently and for good reason has opposed development on our beach since 1972. The creation of the new Unitary Authbority should not change the position.
Where, we ask, is the new "transparency" that we were promised in May this year? What we consider to be an abuse of proper process by the planning officers, in support of the developer, whom they refer to as their "client", must not be rewarded by an unacceptable planning approval.
The Planning Performance Agreement is to be discussed at a meeting of the Carlyon Parish Council on Tuesday, 22nd September at 6pm in the old Restormel Borough Council chamber in Penwinnick Road, St Austell.
(We look at the new proposals in more detail)
14th August 2009: FOOTPATH APPEAL WITHDRAWN
Ampersand has withdrawn its legal challenge to Cornwall County Council's decision last year that the route from Beach Road down to the end of the old Coliseum building at Crinnis is offically a public right of way. A Public Inquiry into the issue had been scheduled for 8th September after Ampersand had announced an appeal in March 2009.
The Planning Inspectorate has confirmed the developer has withdrawn its appeal but says a site meeting will be held instead. The Inspector will then decide whether to uphold the County's decision or reject it, or she might even decide to extend the path onto the beach itself after new evidence was put forward by campaigners.
Carlyon Bay Watch's Roy Bennett says: "In choosing yet again to withdraw their Appeal, the developers at Carlyon Bay have conceded that their published plans are indefensible. Now is the time for these beaches to be returned to public use, in an unspoiled state, for the benefit of the local community and tourists alike. Such action would put an end to the continuing drain on the public purse, and the undermining of the local economy, that has been the result since these developers effectively destroyed the beaches at Carlyon Bay. We shall meanwhile continue to support a revised proposal for an environmentally-sensitive, proportionate, safe and sustainable development, restricted to the site of the former Coliseum complex but this support must depend upon the earliest possible implementation of the public's access via the Right of Way as ordered by Cornwall Council's Footpath Modification Panel. There is no longer any case for delay. "
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| Gloria Price |
She told the St Austell Voice newspaper: "The company says it has always wanted public access to the beach but it has fought tooth and nail against the footpath."
In April 2008 Cornwall County Council finally bowed to years of pressure from a group of local walkers led by Mrs Gloria Price and Frances Taylor to register several footpaths at Carlyon Bay as official rights of way on maps. They are:
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the path leading from the South West Coastal Path alongside the Carlyon Bay Golf Course, down to Fishing Point at the eastern end of Carlyon Bay
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the route down from Beach Road to the development site and across the front of the Coliseum building
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the path from Sea Road by the railway arch across the golf course to the South West Coastal Path.
The Council said any objections would be referred to the Secretary of State for the Environment who would appoint a public inquiry inspector.
Although Ampersand has said that public access to the beaches will be maintained, the registering of these paths means unrestricted access to the beach would be enshrined in law. Carlyon Bay Watch feels that relying on Ampersand's assurances could lead to public access being by permission only and over time could be restricted or lost.
(More on the access and footpaths issue)
28th April 2009: SEA WALL APPEAL DELAYED AGAIN
A High Court hearing into Ampersand's appeal against the government's rejection of its sea defence proposals at Carlyon Bay has been put back again to later in 2009. A date for the hearing had originally been set for 1st December 2008 and was then deferred until 1st May 2009. No new date has been announced.
The then Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Ruth Kelly, refused to allow planning permission for the so-called "enhanced" sea wall and beach recharge after a five-week public inquiry in 2006 on the grounds that the scheme flouted various aspects of planning policy.
Ampersand claim it was irrational and unlawful for the Secretary of State to turn down the scheme and say they are "reviewing our development options". (More on why the sea defence scheme was rejected)
"The Battle of Carlyon Bay" can be read in the July 2009 edition of the Oldie magazine - journalist Keith Dovkants investigates the background and why the future of the bay is "still uncertain".
27th FEBRUARY 2009: APPEAL OVER ILLEGAL WALL WITHDRAWN
Ampersand has withdrawn its appeal against an order to remove its illegal temporary sea defences. A public inquiry into the appeal was due to have been heard later in 2009. But the Planning Inspectorate has confirmed they have received a letter from the developer withdrawing its appeal against the enforcement notice for the existing sea wall.
Ampersand have issued a press release saying they were withdrawing their appeal because it was in the "best interests" of all parties involved. They added they had two years to comply with the enforcement notice and would be looking at "all the options before us".
Carlyon Bay Watch president, Roy Bennett, told BBC Radio Cornwall on 27th February that it was good news: "I have to see it as positive because Ampersand is accepting they couldn't win another public inquiry to consider this appeal against this enforcement notice." But he told listeners that there was still too much uncertainty about the developer's plans. "You do wonder what's coming next because they've said they'll look at other ways of overcoming the difficulties and will be looking at all options."
Carlyon Bay Watch also issued a press release giving our reaction to the news.
MEDIA RELEASE
BEACH APPEAL WITHDRAWN
We note that the owners of the beach at Carlyon Bay have withdrawn their appeal, thereby avoiding a Public Inquiry, against the Enforcement Notice issued by Restormel Borough Council in 2007 which requires removal of the illegally constructed sea wall presently blighting the beach.
This should not be a surprise as the enforcement proceedings were soundly based and the appeal, entered at the very last minute, was made on unsupportable grounds. The illegal sea wall was identified as that which was required for the revised development plans presented to Restormel Borough Council in 2002 which were withdrawn in 2003, when the developer was faced with a public inquiry into those plans.
Additionally it was admitted by the developer, during the four-week Public Inquiry held in November 2006 into the sea wall as now constructed, that the alleged temporary sea wall is not compatible with the so-called "extant consent". These facts undermine the developer's claim that the sea wall is either temporary or defensive.
It remains a great pity that the offending sea wall, which day by day is effectively destroying the beach, may not be removed for nearly two years. After that time action for its removal becomes available to the authorities under legal obligation currently in place.
For general enquiries email Carlyonbaywatch@aol.com
