‘Let’s not sell family silver to pay for harbour redevelopment’

Stuart Falla, who has been leading work on the ports’ future harbour project, yesterday said he believed deputies could agree a strategy before the next election but that would require ‘innovative’ thinking about how to pay for it.

Asked if anything would happen in the next three to five years, Mr Falla said it was unlucky that the proposals had been delivered at a time of stress for the public finances amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

‘We’ve come up with a very large project but there’s no money,’ he said.

‘So I almost need to know whether I’m allowed to add money in order to answer your question,’ he said during an address to a Guernsey Chamber of Commerce lunch held at the Old Government House Hotel.

‘If the way of paying for this was to sell off all the family silver, I would most probably prefer not to do it if we sell the wrong things in order to do it. If, however, we’re able to find an innovative way that doesn’t include selling off the family silver then I would like to believe that within the term of this House that we should be at least in a position of having a long-term development strategy agreed, the planning briefs done.’

The port area could also be configured in a sufficiently flexible way so as, for example, to unhook the gangways from one area and reposition them in another.

‘Do I believe that we will be close to placing an order for the design of a new harbour structure? I doubt if that will happen in that time.’

But if a decision was made to go ahead but not start it, Mr Falla said that would be a ‘keystone’ decision for the project.

‘Knowing a direction of travel is the important bit. The States need to learn how to cooperate better together. I think they may well do so.’

Mr Falla, a non-States member of the States’ Trading Supervisory Board, expressed disappointment that deputies last week decided against supporting a STSB blueprint to develop St Peter Port Harbour – which he described as full and requiring reorganisation.

But he welcomed the formation of a regeneration board – which deputies backed last week – as having potential to evolve into an infrastructure body able to take on major projects of this type. The board was due to be composed by this December, with outline planning briefs to be debated by the States in December 2022.

Anti-flood gate idea to help protect Bridge area

LOCK GATES at the mouth of St Sampson’s Harbour would help protect it and the surrounding area from the risk of flooding from rising sea levels.

Stuart Falla, a non-States member of the States’ Trading Supervisory Board, said such a move would also protect the Leale’s Yard site that has been identified as ripe for redevelopment.

‘You would effectively immediately protect the whole of the Bridge area,’ said Mr Falla when he spoke at the Chamber of Commerce’s regular lunch event.

‘Those of you that know the area well will realise that Leale’s yard, as we call it, is below high tide level even now.

‘And therefore if levels of tide go higher, a large part of the Braye du Valle will become flooded again unless we protect it from rising sea levels.’

Putting an anti-flood gate on the harbour mouth would be possible if larger vessels no longer needed to use the harbour as part of a wider harbours redevelopment project.

‘Because you’re dealing with those of a more domestic size [it] could be done and therefore when you do get high tides with rising sea levels you can close off those lock gates to protect that area.’

Referring to deputies not making a decision on the redevelopment of St Sampson’s and St Peter Port harbours, he added: ‘We still need to solve those problems. They haven’t gone away. So therefore while the States didn’t make a decision last week, I’m sure that at some stage in the near future they will be asked to make a decision that can help solve some of those issues.’