Architectural designer Martin Nickolls showed his plans to reinvigorate the area recently, based on his view that the area was something of a waste of valuable space in the town.
He has suggested an underground car park that could hold some 200 cars, with a plaza above, which would occupy about two-thirds of the space, with a marina in the corner and spreading around the pier towards the Cambridge Berth.
But doing away with the area would have a big impact, not just on local boat owners but on the harbour itself, said fisherman Dougal Lane.
‘What about the boat owners that use it? It’s been busy this year,’ he said.
Fishermen and other boat owners use the area to beach their vessels while they clean them or apply anti-fouling.
Mr Lane said he also believed the area to be a ‘spending beach’, which allowed the wave energy from swell to dissipate.
Without it, he said there could be problems for other parts of the harbour during rough weather.
He thought that if there was to be a car park it would have to be at road level, still retaining a beach underneath.
Recently, fisherman Michael Scrimshaw took his boat to the Careening Hard for repairs after it sank off the coast of Sark and was towed back to Guernsey.
He said that he thought it was important to keep the hard.
‘That’s madness,’ he said of Mr Nickolls’ concept.
‘I thought Guernsey was trying to get people out of their cars.
‘I think it’s bad idea as boaters need this beach on neap tides.’
Guernsey Boatowners’ Association chairman Nick Guillemette said he saw a different version of Mr Nickolls’ plans at the same time as there were discussions some years ago for a new marina in the pool section of the harbour, but the idea was a bit different then.
‘Martin’s idea was to create more parking but still providing a laying-up area for anti-fouling or emergency repairs,’ he said.
‘It involved dredging the lower reaches of the Careening Hard and creating new berths for local boats.’
Ports’ plans were for a sill to be built to allow nearly 200 boats to stay afloat at all times in an area that would be accessible from half-tide upwards.
Acting harbour master James Way said the Careening Hard was a practical and low-tech alternative to lifting boats out of the water.
Berth holders can use it free of charge while non-berth holders are able to use it for a modest fee.
‘Guernsey Ports does occasionally use the area for emergencies, including to safely ground vessels that are taking on water,’ he said.
But reports that the area was essential for the harbour were incorrect, he added.
‘Recent wave modelling indicates it offers little as a spending beach, as wave energy generally dissipates long before the waves hit the beach.’
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