‘Eyesore’ Stoke Lake sea defence angers residents
GOSPORT residents have hit out against a council for building an ‘eyesore’ sea defence despite 114 homes being at risk of flooding.
The coastal defence scheme in Alverstoke was proposed in 2019 before gaining planning permission from Gosport Borough Council in 2020.
The project is designed to protect homes against tidal flooding from Stoke Lake the structure is made of an L-shaped flood defence wall with a floodgate across Little Anglesey Road.
John Theodosiou, who lives on Little Anglesey, believes the scheme will affect the value of his house.
‘The construction of the wall and the concrete housing to protect the gates are an eyesore, as is the wall on the causeway,’ he said.
‘I said the council will have to pay significant compensation to the owners for devaluing their properties.
‘I’m not alone in objecting to this, there are many who don’t support it.
‘It’s very sad, the vista of the lake and the amenity of the area and the conservation of the area is going to be spoiled.’
The project is being delivered by Coastal Partners, a collaboration of four local authorities working to address the risks of flooding and coastal erosion.
Steve Fitzmaurice, engineering team leader at Coastal Partners, said: ‘Alverstoke is one of the areas of greatest flood risk in Gosport. There’s a significant risk of flooding to 114 homes, plus roads and utilities.
‘The existing defences are not high enough to meet sea level rise predictions.
‘This scheme, which is funded mainly by the Environment Agency, will reduce the risk of flooding massively.
‘Local exhibitions of the outline scheme were held in 2017, with 76 per cent of respondents supporting it.
‘In 2019, at the detailed design stage, 90 per cent of respondents completely or partially supported the scheme.’
Work started this year before being paused due to the diversion of high-voltage cables on the site.
Mr Fitzmaurice said that Coastal Partners are considering solutions to a ‘significant’ rise in costs and delivery times.
He added that they are working hard to ensure the scheme remains affordable and additional funding will be secured as required.