Call for protection of Govan Graving Docks
CLYDE Docks Preservation Initiative ( CDPI) is calling on the Scottish Government to establish Govan Graving Docks and other maritime infrastructure on the River Clyde as key economic assets for future river transport, maritime, engineering and renewable industry potential and, through this, to rule out any possibility of house building on the site being approved.
A-listed Govan Graving Docks, used as a location during filming of the First World War film 1917, has been described by Historic Environment Scotland as ‘an outstanding graving dock complex without parallel in Scotland’. Constructed between 1869 and 1898 for the Clyde Navigation Trust, the site could then accommodate the largest ships in the world and was in use until 1987.
CDPI, a maritime heritage and sustainability social enterprise, is recommending a similar policy to that of the Safeguarded Wharves established on the River Thames in London to prevent the loss of structures to private property development that does not support sustainable, local wealth creation and high-skilled opportunities. The initiative strongly suggests that a similar policy should be applied to the remaining docks and vacant spaces alongside the Clyde.
Earlier this year, a £500,000 restoration programme to restore the docks to a fully operational ship repair and maintenance facility was announced, although it’s likely that restoration would cost significantly more. The proposed mixeduse development would see housing built on the site, and CDPI notes that housing and industrial use on a single site like the docks is not compatible.
The organisation’s fear is that any housing development would rule out the return of industry to the site and full renovation and reuse of the Graving Docks. Previous proposals included 700 flats, a museum, restaurant, shopping and office space, and a hotel. Planning permission was turned down for reasons including the failure to preserve the site’s special architectural and historic interest and flood risk to any new properties built in the area.
CDPI was established in 2015 to campaign for the restoration of the historic graving docks as a maritime heritage park. It has since developed its scope to look at the broader maritime and related issues impacting the River Clyde and Firth of Clyde region. In 2016, CDPI founded the Govan Docks Regeneration Trust as a dedicated charity with the objectives of regenerating and protecting the docks. Follow the story at clydedocks.wordpress.com