Prince of Wales Pier, Falmouth repairs could cost millions

The meeting of the council's Harbour Board took place on January 22 when options for the future of the iconic pier in Falmouth were discussed and reported on at a meeting of Falmouth Town Council's finance & general purposes committee on Monday.

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The county council was told that initial figures for the necessary repairs were in the region of £5m to £8m and all avenues of funding and finance to ensure the repairs could be made would be pursued.

During the meeting it was recognised that the pier was a strategic transport link within the county and the council’s draft transport plan included waterborne transport. It was further considered that waterborne transport would support the environment agenda.

The steps at Prince of Wale Pier are currently closed to the public

Problems with the pier were first reported in the Packet in December when it was said that the pier was in such a bad state of repair it required "significant" investment as parts of it fell into the sea.

Since the last inspection by Cornwall Council in June 2021 the destruction had accelerated with more steps falling into the sea. Some of the steps are suffering from concrete cancer and have been closed with boats unable to use them to embark and disembark.

In July of last year the harbours board received a detailed report on a visual structural inspection of the Prince of Wales Pier, Falmouth by Binnies UK Limited. The comprehensive report included a number of recommendations to maintain the pier in a serviceable condition.

The steps at Prince of Wale Pier are currently closed to the public

The recommendations within the report were that there should be a rolling refurbishment programme in the 2022- 2023 budget for the Prince of Wales Pier.

Work was being undertaken with the report consultant to develop a repair plan for the next five years, with an associated budget.

Opportunities to secure funding through grant schemes, such as the Heritage Lottery, Town Deal Bid and the Coastal Communities Fund, would continue to be pursued by the service.

There was a suggestion that A&P Falmouth could work in partnership with the company and also Falmouth Harbour Commission to improve the gateway to Falmouth.

A spokesperson for Cornwall Council told the Packet: "Three sets of steps – numbers one, four and six - remain open and timetables for 2022 are being drawn up accordingly.

"The remaining set of steps are being assessed for repair/restoration and we hope at least one of those sets will return to use for the peak season.  
 

"With regards to the longer-term plans for the pier we are engaging with the Falmouth Place Shaping Stakeholders and working with Falmouth Harbourside CIC on a feasibility study to build on the work they have already undertaken, which will be subject to funding being identified."