New marina plan '˜would boost local economy'

Aylesbury-based Fenny Marina have submitted proposals for a 170-berth inland waterways marina, with parking/ supporting buildings.

Previous outline application for the Horton Road site were approved by Aylesbury Vale District Council in 2009 (100 berths) and 2010 (an additional 70 berths, while in 2013 Fenny Marina came up with an alternative 200-berth scheme which was also suppported.

None of these schemes came to fruition, but now the company is looking to progress with a development.

The planning document for the latest scheme, issued by Fenny Marina’s agent GVA, states: “These previous planning permissions were not implemented due to the recent shortage and cost of development finance during the recession.

“With the economic recovery, our client is expecting it to be easier and more cost effective to raise the necessary finance. However, he has found that it is still not economic to implement the 200 berth approval due to the need to remove a significant amount of spoil from the site. By contrast, a scheme that combines the previously approved 100 and 70 berth proposals has been designed to retain all the resulting spoil in an extended bund at the back of the 70 berth part of the marina.”

Fenny Marina currently own and manage Fenny Marina in Southam, Warwickshire.

The application states: “Their focus is on providing a safe, secure and enjoyable berthing experience for leisure break holiday-makers. The company is looking to meet the growing demand from clients for high quality waterborne leisure accommodation and on-site facilities, particularly in light of the current trend for increased demand for domestic self-catering holidays in the UK and in the number of boat licenses.

“To do this requires continued investment and the proposal to create a 170 berth marina to serve the Grand Union Canal with facilities would increase the number of holiday makers and boaters to the area and provide additional economic advantages to the local economy.”

Ivinghoe Parish Council has called for an extension to the consultation period on the application until further information can be obtained.

It has called for an updated travel plan as the one submitted contains data from 2008 and it fears traffic is now busier near the site.

The parish council is also calling for a Construction Site Management Plan.

They state: “This will help us to identify how the site is to be managed, traffic flows, potential hazards, etc. during construction.

“The council are aware that in the past the site has potentially had hazardous waste stored there.

“We would therefore like to see a report on whether the site is currently containing any hazardous waste, either visible or non-visible, and if present any plans to mitigate this.”

They add: “With potentially 170 berths and fewer than 70 parking spaces, there is a disparity in the numbers of people who could safely access any amenities, e.g. library, doctors, etc, not supplied within the chandlery.

“We would therefore request that the plans include a safe pedestrian way from the site to connect with the Ivinghoe – Ford End – Great Gap – Brownlow footpath, which should include a footbridge over the canal to connect the towpath to the said footpath, plus a pedestrian access point to the towpath from the site.”