Residents fear ‘superboats’ plan will turn Chelsea into St Tropez

PLANS to allow superboats to moor along a stretch of the Thames are set to turn the area into a second St Tropez, opponents claim.

And though Chelsea is renowned for its affluence, residents are not too pleased to see “quaint” houseboats replaced by floating gin palaces.

Houseboats have moored at Chelsea Reach, next to one of the plushest streets in Chelsea, Cheyne Walk, since the Thirties. However, there are now concerns that the quaint boats will be replaced by £6million superboats after the Reach was bought by a group of in- vestors headed by property developers Andrew Moffat, 44, and his wife Charlotte, 45, who also own the nearby Cadogan Pier.

Advertising material written shortly after the site was purchased announced plans to install large luxury boats. Now locals, including Felicity Kendal, the actress, have launched a campaign to stop the developments.

Ms Kendal told The Daily Telegraph: “It is a very precious part of south London and the Thames and the parks and the various things that are part of our heritage going back hundreds of years should be protected. If someone decided that they wanted to build a villa in Hyde Park, they wouldn’t be allowed to do it, but they can colonise part of the Thames, which I think is outrageous.”

The campaigners also fear the superboats would not be occupied fulltime, altering the character of the area.

Suzanne Spiro, a former resident, said: “The boats were being marketed at £6 million with a personal trainer and a boat each day to the City of London. Who even wants that?”

Stanley Johnson, the former MEP and father of Boris Johnson, the Foreign Secretary, who has become aware of the campaign through recent appearances on the reality television programme Made in Chelsea, added: “I think it’s ludicrous to have massive houseboats. It’s bad enough seeing those massive houseboats in St Tropez – we can’t have them in Chelsea too.”

A spokesman for the developers said: “Our aim is also to bring on a small number of new boats, sympathetically designed, which will offer owners the rare opportunity to live on an incredible space on the River Thames.”

A spokesman for Kensington and Chelsea council said: “Planning rules are already in place to stop over-development in that area. Huge luxury houseboats cannot simply move in.”