Council draws up marina masterplan
GWYNEDD Council is looking to set up a “masterplan” to revitalise the area surrounding one of its most popular marinas, officers have confirmed.
It is hoped that a successful business case could be made for additional funding, while working with established facilities such as the nearby Plas Heli could revive the fortunes of Harbwr Pwllheli and the Hafan marina after officers admitted to a historic lack of investment.
Having appointed external consultants at a cost of £25,000, a meeting of Gwynedd Council’s Education and Economy Scrutiny Committee discussed the future of the facilities which currently bring some £250,000 a year into council coffers.
But thanks to the dwindling number of vessel owners based at Pwllheli over the past decade, this is a far cry from the £800,000 they were generating at the height of their popularity.
The deputy head for economy and community, addressing members in Caernarfon, added the cost of dredging the channel was “among the highest in Britain” but accepted silting problems had dogged the twin facilities in recent years.
Llyr Jones went on to say that efforts to attract new customers was hampered by a lack of general investment as well as nearby restaurants and such facilities.
Any investment, however, would depend on a successful business case being presented and accepted.
“Sooner or later we will need to upgrade the general infrastructure,” he added.
“The risk is by not paying attention now, the authority would fail to meet its obligations to the facility which is of great benefit to the local economy.”
The master plan, he added, would encompass the Glandon area of Pwllheli and confirmed that while the RNLI was in the process of building a new lifeboat centre in the vicinity, the authority was also involved in talks to try to attract a new hotel operator to the area.
The presentation followed the recommendation of external consultants, who felt that the best course of action would be for the authority to first work on finding solutions to some outstanding historic issues before looking to enter into a joint venture with a specialist company from the private sector for its day-to-day running.
The harbour’s location was described as a “marketable strength” but the presentation also found that there “didn’t appear to be any strategic vision” for the site, citing a need for a “more joined-up approach to planning and management.”
Despite this, they also reported there is an established external market for harbour and marina management, with evidence of “real interest from the private sector in entering into a long term partnership with Gwynedd Council.”