From Digby Ellis-Brecknell.
ONCE upon a time, there was a beautiful road running from St Brelade’s Bay Parish Church to Beauport Battery; possibly a little dangerous, but driving slowly gave one time to enjoy the scenery in safety.
My grandmother lived there, the gates were wide open and many walked through, including the Germans who added their bunkers and rolls of barbed wire.
Sadly my grandmother is gone, the gates are firmly shut and the wire replaced by the infamous black fence.
Thankfully, the road remains unchanged, or so I thought … Sadly Mr Mansell has decided to widen his road. Yes, it is his road but not the land on either side upon which he has set his new boundaries and surprisingly without planning permission.
The rockface has been ripped down and an obscene wall of sleepers constructed. I appreciate it might have been needed to prevent rock fall, but there were other ways to protect the landscape, which would not have left such a scar.
The Planning department, the media, the parish, were all informed many months ago and little action was taken to prevent this work. However, planning ordered the work to stop, a little late perhaps as it was near to completion.
Despite the Planning enforcement the rock breaker returned much to my disgust. I frantically phoned everyone I could think of but the response was not reassuring; someone at planning said that if Mr Mansell continued he could be prosecuted but nobody was going to go and actually stop the work. Senator Cohen seemed to suggest that as I was not being directly affected by the work I had no real interest, given that the parish hall appeared to have no power.
My grandmother would be horrified, as would the Germans, the generous Boot family who donated land to the people of Jersey and whose memorial rests beside that once stunning road, and I am sure that whoever knew that road would also feel the same disgust.
I urge you, if you have ever walked upon that road to return and let people know what you think of the recent changes.
Unfortunately planning has now been granted and little can be done, except to sit back and complain.
Shame on you Mr Mansell and anyone who let this happen, or took little action to prevent it. What has been done to our coastline is shameful and shows how little some people care about our Island.
If this selfish attitude continues where will our Island be and what will be left for our children? Once again, shame on you.
Towerside,
Mont Sohier,
St Brelade.
Article posted on 16th July, 2008 - 1.59pm
3 Article Comments
remember Digby, money buys all, And jersey is the hands of many greedy people.
We have just returned from a one week holiday in Jersey.We have taken holidays to Jersey for the past 12 years.We swim a lot and one of our favourite beaches to swim is Beauport.When I was walking along the beach at Beauport I looked up and saw what looked like a landslide,ugly black plastic sheeting, rows of car tyres and standing above all this a black steel fence that runs like a scar along that part of the coastline.What attracts a lot of people to your island are the untouched beaches and coastlineapart from the fortifications the German occupation forces installed(then THEY were the enemy)It is sad to see private individuals creating such an eyesore.Other tourists on the beach were very dissappointed at such an aberration to Beauport.
Cyril Feely
I must concur with Cyril feely. I too have been visiting Jersey for many years in fact I have lost count. We always walk along the road from the Fishermens Chapel up to the Trent grave. Last week we were amazed at the change in the road and the very much”in your face” of the railway sleepers. Obviously these sleepers will remain in place and one can only hope that in time vegetation will grow over and hide the hideous wood. This year we walked past the Trent grave along to Nigels house, a lovely walk spoiled by the sleepers.