Drilling works taking place in Margate harbour this week are being done on behalf of Margate RNLI.
The core sample works are part of investigations being carried out as the RNLI branch looks for a new base.
The RNLI will be served notice when the lease expires in April 2021 for the current boathouse which is based behind Turner Contemporary. The boathouse is also too small to house the new Shannon all-weather lifeboat, meaning a larger venue is needed.
The current site will also become untenable as Turner Contemporary carries out expansion plans, which could include siting a 100-room hostel on the land adjacent to the gallery.
Turner Contemporary confirmed expansion plans to The Isle of Thanet News last October.
At the time The Isle of Thanet News discovered that the £6million project to expand would be a combination of new build refurbishment and reconfiguration at the gallery.
Documents to Kent County Council’s Policy & Resources Cabinet Committee last year stated: “Turner Contemporary has outgrown the space in its current building and over the last (six) years of operations, staff have been able to highlight the strengths and weaknesses of the current facility which is based in Margate facing the North Sea.
The RNLI branch had previously made a planning application for a new boathouse on the Sands (pictured above) but these were put on the backburner in 2016 amid numerous objections.
The core sample works will takes place throughout the week.
A Margate RNLI spokesman said: “In the week beginning 13 August, a contractor will be carrying out investigative work in Margate Harbour on behalf of the RNLI.
“It is no secret that Margate Lifeboat Station needs to be replaced in the near future. The current site is unfeasible as an extension for our neighbour Turner Contemporary is in development and we will be served notice to quit our present location when our lease expires.
“The construction of a new station will provide a base which is fit for future lifesaving operations in the town. It will be carefully designed to accommodate a new Shannon class all-weather lifeboat and to fit in with the town’s developing harbour front, placing us at the heart of the community.
“Although the proposed location and plans are still in development (and the current works are investigatory only) we are eager to share designs with the public as soon as we are able.
“The RNLI is committed to the safety of Margate’s residents and visitors, now and in the future and this year saw the first local Swim Safe programme offering free water safety classes to children in the town.
“The speed which the classes filled up is a testament to how enthusiastically local residents take to the water and to their appetite to being able to enjoy the sea as safely as possible.
“The August investigative works will cause no disruption to harbour users and we expect them to be complete by 17 August.”
The gallery expansion could also scupper a previous pledge for the area to provide boat space for Margate Yacht Club.
Excellent news…Now let’s see the Planning Application approved and the Boathouse and Shannon Class Lifeboat in Station in the shelter of the Margate Harbour Arm , as soon as possible..
Could this proposal scupper any thoughts of making Margate Harbour into a marina like Ramsgate. ?
I’m amazed that TDC could even think about ‘evicting’ the RNLI from their current base, unless there is a guarantee of a new and better location. On the other hand there is no justification for Margate having a new ‘mega’ lifeboat like the Shannon. Given the tidal nature of the Margate station and the speed of modern lifeboats – other stations with afloat boats could attend most casualties in the estuary before the Margate boat even got its keel wet. Even worst-case scenarios would be hard to imagine that call for a big boat at Margate. Commercial shipping casualties requiring that capacity are almost non-existent nowadays. What Margate needs is state-of-the-art fast inshore rescue boats to deal with the steady stream of leisure-related incidents.
L. Lawn, your observations are erroneous. Commercial shipping is in fact increasing in the Thames Estuary along with leisure use. The RNLI carefully reviews the need for lifeboats around the coast & Margate forms a vital link in the chain of provision around the coast. The types of lifeboat are selected to meet the need of the area they cover; hence Margate’s boats can work in the shallow waters of the offshore sandbanks in the estuary that the boats from other stations cannot approach. The new Shannon to replace the end of life Mersey will be faster, to provide that quicker response you mention along with the Inshore lifeboat already on station.
It is KCC who are the leaseholders of the site of the present station.
L. Lawn, your observations are erroneous. Commercial shipping is in fact increasing in the Thames Estuary along with leisure use. The RNLI carefully reviews the need for lifeboats around the coast & Margate forms a vital link in the chain of provision around the coast. The types of lifeboat are selected to meet the need of the area they cover; hence Margate’s boats can work in the shallow waters of the offshore sandbanks in the estuary that the boats from other stations cannot approach. The new Shannon to replace the end of life Mersey will be faster, to provide that quicker response you mention, along with the Inshore lifeboat already on station.
It is KCC who are the leaseholders of the site of the present station.
Thanks for that analysis. Commercial shipping might be on the increase but safety standards are much higher, nav aids are vastly improved and the ‘traditional’ strandings, collisions and sinkings are very rare. Of course, should a catastrophe occur then all weather boats would play a part , but with the fleets of fast wind farm support vessels, with crews trained in putting people on and taking them off of the turbines, the RNLI would not be the only resource available if – say- a cruise ship or ferry needed to be evacuated. The ‘big boat’ at Margate became less important almost as soon as the first IRB was placed on station in the 1960s, but there was quite a lot of resistance to that idea then. Still – if the RNLI have the funds I would not argue against having a Shannon at Margate – it would be good for PR if nothing else. I’m just not sure there is still a genuine need for an AWB on the station.
Just a thought (I don’t know the legal answer) but is the seabed in the harbour anything which TDC can exercise control over – or is it Crown property?
Good news for RNLI Margate, ALB class like the Shannon is a perfect SAR unit for this area, ideally positioned in the harbour, the boat would be afloat and on its way within around 10-15 minutes from the initial pager alert