Isle of Wight council report that the new Ventnor Eastern Cliffs Esplanade seawall continues to perform extremely well, with all 153 king piles expected to be in place by next Monday (12th February 2024).
They say that work to stabilise the existing structure has been completed and the task of reinstatement has begun. The replacement sections will be fabricated off site to mitigate the impact and risk of weather on safety and quality.
While progress on site remains challenging due to the weather, the experienced marine contractor continues to work double tides, at every opportunity, to help finish the work as quickly as possible.
The latest (Nov 23) drone footage of the works can be found on the council’s YouTube channel.
Isle of Wight Coastal Defence Schemes
The EA has set up a site compound at Shore Road car park, Bonchurch to store materials and machinery needed to undertake investigative works along the esplanade between Wheelers Bay and Bonchurch.
Risk management works in the form of stripping back the esplanade and excavations to a depth of around three metres in each borehole started this week.
Why the additional works are necessary
These additional works are deemed necessary due to the presence of a Southern Water sewerage main and potentially additional unmarked services embedded within the esplanade.
The EA has reduced the size of the machinery required to undertake these works and as a result, can reduce the size of its initial working area. This will allow them to keep the esplanade open to the public through to Monday 12th February.
15 metres boreholes
Once they have closed the esplanade, boreholes will be drilled to a depth of 15 metres. The recovered cores will enable the project team to understand the presence of voiding, the makeup of the coastal defences and the bedrock beneath.
During this phase of works, the esplanade between Bonchurch and Wheelers Bay will be closed until Monday 25th March.
Bonchurch landslide and Leeson Road
Leeson Road remains closed due to last November’s major landslide — one of the largest of its kind on the south coast in recent years.
Isle of Wight council have commissioned an independent landslide investigation and risk assessment of the affected area.
Island Roads has also commissioned engineers to assess the feasibility of opening part or all of the road.
The local community will be updated once the information on the two studies becomes available.
Next public meeting
The council will be holding another public meeting in Ventnor to update local residents on Thursday, 29th February at 6pm.
The meeting will be held at St Catherine’s Church and also include updates on Ventnor Eastern Esplanade, the EA’s Ventnor coastal programme and Island Roads’ progress on Rene Howe Walk (the Cascades).
