R.I.P. Old Harwich

From the website (my underline)
The Site
The business at Navyard will be re-locating locally.

The site has been operated by Mann Lines in excess of 50 years but the shipping business is constantly evolving and the site is no longer fit for purpose.

The new business location will enable Mann Lines to respond to modern shipping requirements as they continue to evolve in the future.
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So the current business is going anyway - what's a realistic alternative for the site?

This type of urban regeneration of redundant dockyard sites is going on all the time in Amsterdam.
As a consequence, run-down wharf areas are becoming alive again.

Of course, Harwich isn't quite like Amsterdam ;)
 
A few years ago the inevitable closure of HM Chatham Dockyard left little but a polluted area of dereliction.
There was much local knashing of teeth and cries of woe about loss of jobs.
The goverment at the time used an organisation "SEEDA" to provide public funding to clean and decontaminate parts of the site and make it attractive to developers.
There was much local knashing of teeth and cries of woe about loss of land for factories and industrial use.
MDL marinas knew an opportunity when they saw one and took over some of the old redundant docks.
Developers started to build new homes, desperately needed in the area on the vacant brownfield sites.
Several educational organisations have moved into the area including COFE and Greenwich.
The area now offers all types of housing and commercial employment, the marina and shopping centre being the central focus and is probably the most visited place in the towns apart from historic Rochester.
It has been recently announced that the last remnants of the commercial docks are to close, probably due the the expence and faffing about locking in and out the small ships still using the remaining dock.
There is much local knashing of teeth and cries of woe about loss of jobs.

The river is still in the game commercially just upriver is Scotline, probably biggest importer of softwood into the UK.
As for our maritime past the old part of the Dockyard is now a heritage site and has more history than just about anywhere else including the upstart Portsmouth (can we have Victory back where she belongs) please.
Just about every significant figuire in our naval history walked down the Queens steps steps outside the Harbourmasters office.



Try this excellent quality webcam overlooking the MDL marina not sure if you can still pan or tilt the camera. OGs gaff is on the far bank not far from the castle. :)
Alan Buckman




Same old fuss about 10 miles upstream at Wouldham, it took over 2 years to reduce the old cementworks which were abandoned 50 years ago to steel and rubble that could was reused onsite in the new development..........and the area got a brand new bridge into the bargain.
The locals whinged like hell of course......spect they will be now quietly enjoying the new roads/bridleways and footpaths.
 
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I don't think that any historic buildings or suchlike will be demolished.

Looking at the proposed site for dwellings, I would question the livability of people living there . There is every chance that they will be munching diesel fumes from the ships
and container port apart from the 24hr noise. Not for this site , but In recent waterside developments i.e. Docklands, Colne, Mistley
but Maldon etc , many residents did not realize that there would be no water there for long periods and experience hissing mud and unwelcome bugs in the summer. Nice if you like
wildlife though. Our ancestors new a thing or two about where not to build houses.

It would be nice if most of the development would be targeted towards families with children and include schools and suchlike, that's what Harwich needs , but there would not be enough interest from developers and investors .

The reason why the historic areas came about in the first place was jobs and trade. Now it is gone so what next ?
 
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Kukri said:
Good point. Container ports are very noisy - not so much the sounds of cranes and trucks working cargo as the noise of the pontoon hatch covers being dropped back, which is always with a hell of a bang.
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I'm sure the kind estate agents will be expaining clearly, in advance about the hatch covers clanging, humming generators, hooting trucks etc...
 
Will there be a high-speed catamaran service to Ipswich for the commuters? It could call at Pin Mill, adding a new zest to the dull old moorings, after all the place is looking so run down these days, it urgently needs modernising.
 
Ohlin Karcher said:
Will there be a high-speed catamaran service to Ipswich for the commuters? It could call at Pin Mill, adding a new zest to the dull old moorings, after all the place is looking so run down these days, it urgently needs modernising.
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But there's a speed limit on the river...
 
speed limit doesn't apply to commercial vessels!
Couple of thoughts'
I do wonder about the flood risk to the site. The present barrier runs along the road joining the life boat station down to navigation house.(think that's what its called) Judging from the weird funnels on the barges in the artist impression who ever drew it isn't very nautically minded and with the ever increase risk these days (real or imagined) I expect there will be a six foot concrete wall around the whole area and because someone might want to go boating and that's not safe there wont be any access to the water at all!
 
Aquaboy said:
speed limit doesn't apply to commercial vessels!
Couple of thoughts'
I do wonder about the flood risk to the site. The present barrier runs along the road joining the life boat station down to navigation house.(think that's what its called) Judging from the weird funnels on the barges in the artist impression who ever drew it isn't very nautically minded and with the ever increase risk these days (real or imagined) I expect there will be a six foot concrete wall around the whole area and because someone might want to go boating and that's not safe there wont be any access to the water at all!
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What a horrible idea, I make you right it sounds just like what they would do! Plenty of warning signs as wellIMG_2768.JPG
 
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Charlie Boy said:
Thing is about harwich, it’s in Essex which is aspiration territory for a lot of commuters. Any house in Essex will sell, especially if it’s near a station. Added to which, if there is no new building done there then it really will become even more depressing.
I still think those places are utterly fugly though. All the character of a doss house.
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That's not really true. Needs to be near a station that's a 45min commute to the city. Loads of places in Essex are pretty much uncommutable for London.
 
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