Guernsey Press

Al fresco Quay to help unlock Town’s potential

THE quickest of straw polls within the Guernsey Press office today produced a rather unsurprising result.

Published

‘Would you be interested in eating al fresco along the Quay in St Peter Port?’ we asked.

Responses varied from definitely, to definitely not. ‘It would be like eating next to a motorway,’ one colleague said.

It is highly likely that public opinion will be similarly mixed. Rearrangements of traffic flow along the Quay have never passed without comment, be they closures, pedestrian crossings, railings or layout.

However the States and traders in the area should be applauded for the courage to trial an experiment between June and October this year.

The business owners have spoken today of ‘starting to deliver an enhanced seafront experience’. Which is welcome.

But perhaps of greater importance is the part this move can play in revitalising our Town, one of the key aims of the Committee for Economic Development.

The announcement of the al fresco opportunity follows news that a draft development framework for how three areas of St Peter Port could be regenerated is about to be published. ‘Vitality and vibrancy’ are uppermost in the minds of politicians and planners.

Lower Pollet, South Esplanade and Mignot Plateau, and Mansell Street and the Bordage, are places enjoying mixed fortunes, but there is no doubt that they represent an opportunity for positive change, a prospect which could be built upon for other areas of Town.

The Chamber of Commerce said: ‘Identifying opportunities such as this which will add to the “feel” of the area is a welcome step in adding to the “experience” aspect of a thriving Town,’ it said.

The al fresco proposal may only be to allow a handful of tables on to the pavement while planters separate the road from the temporary walkway, which will be on current unloading areas.

But the signal it sends about further opportunities and desire to enhance the main living areas of St Peter Port is an important one.