Ambitious plans to redevelop Fort Bovisand and create new properties and leisure amenities have demanded huge investment to secure access to the historic fort via the cliff road.
After a sometimes hot, dry summer peppered with torrential rainfall and strong winds, remedial works on the first phase to secure the cliff face at Fort Bovisand are nearing completion.
The cliff supports the only access road serving the Fort and the nearby dwellings, and was, until the start of the stabilisation works, in imminent danger of crumbling away into the sea.
The Fort itself is also in urgent need of restoration and is currently on Historic England’s ‘at risk’ register. Once the integrity of the cliff and approach road has been fully secured by Christmas, extensive renovation works on the buildings themselves can begin in earnest.
stabilise the cliff face
Holidaymakers have made great use of the beaches overlooked by the Fort in the last few months. All the while, intensive drilling work to reinforce the cliff face has continued unabated.
Hundreds of stainless-steel soil nails have been inserted, together with pins to support stainless steel anti-erosion mesh. The addition of draining to remove excess ground water will help maintain the integrity of the remedial work and help prevent the possibility of damage in the years to come.
With these drains in place, the overlying mesh and protective matting doubles as a base for vegetation growth. The matting has been seeded with a coastal seed mix, rendering the remedial works virtually invisible as this grows in.
With the matrix of steel nails, matting and drainage system now in place, the cliff-face is currently undergoing the final phase of these stability works, with the placement of rock-armour and the repair of the sea wall.
Completion of the majority of these works before Christmas will herald the start of the next exciting phase of the project early in the New Year.
Following some preparation work, the construction of the first dwellings will begin in January. This will be followed by the replacement of the crumbling accommodation building by the harbour and further renovations to the range of listed buildings and other works within the site to completion over the next couple of years.
There are still other stages to finish the major stabilisation work, but the future is already looking brighter for Fort Bovisand.
