‘IT BEGGARS BELIEF’ SAYS COUNCILLOR OVER BATH ROAD BREAKTHROUGH AFTER 3 YEARS

Ventnor councillor Ed Blake says it ‘beggars belief’ that an agreement has now been reached to progress the reopening of Bath Road after almost 3 years, revealing he only learned of the major development after seeing the announcement on Facebook.

The Conservative representative for Ventnor and St Lawrence has welcomed the agreement between the Isle of Wight Council and a property owner as a ‘major milestone’, but says the development raises further questions about why the long-running situation could not have been resolved sooner.

Bath Road, which links Ventnor Esplanade with the top of the town, has been closed since October 2023 after heavy rain caused a privately owned wall to collapse, covering the road with rubble.

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Responsibility for repairing the wall has since been disputed between County Hall and a property owner.

However, the council announced last week (Thursday) that works are now set to begin ‘as soon as possible’ after an agreement was reached with the proprietor.

A council spokesperson told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) that the authority no longer needs to wait for the outcome of court proceedings to determine ownership.

The council said the ‘important development’ means it can now progress plans to repair the wall and reopen the road.

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Cllr Blake, who says he has been pushing for mediation for a ‘long time’, has questioned why an agreement could not have been reached earlier.

He said:

“It kind of makes a mockery of the whole thing if after almost 3 years they could have just come to that bloody conclusion beforehand.

“It beggars belief and raises more questions than answers – bit weird. I’m the front desk of the council to most people and wasn’t ready for my phone to light up yesterday with like 1,000 questions as to what’s going on – I didn’t know what the announcement was until I looked on Facebook.”

Cllr Blake said the lengthy closure has had a ‘direct effect’ on businesses in the area, with takings down.

David Groocock, of Keep Ventnor Moving (KVM), has said:

“This has been a torrid time for businesses down on the Esplanade, and despite many pleas to get the road open, it remained closed for what will be three summer seasons.

“KVM has been working behind the scenes and has been talking to the property owners where the wall is situated; we do not believe a long, drawn-out court case, which never happens, should have been the reason the road was not cleared.

“The council and Island Roads have a clear legal duty to make sure the highway remains open and should have cleared the road then fought a court case – this would not then have impacted the residents and businesses along the Esplanade.

“We have known for some time that an out-of-court agreement was being negotiated, but this was very much confidential. We did, however, tell the property owners next door who had no idea what was going on.”

Meanwhile, Karl Hunter, of the newly formed Ventnor Roads Group (VRG), described the Bath Road announcement as ‘welcome news’ but ‘long overdue’.

He’s said:

“This is welcome news, and long overdue. Bath Road has been closed for nearly three years, and business owners in Ventnor have paid the price daily.

“There are lessons to be learned here in how Island Roads and the Isle of Wight Council engage and communicate with the town, because the impact on a tourist town like Ventnor has been too great.

“Island Roads objected to reopening the road even if cleared, citing fears that more debris would come through, yet a simple temporary barrier could have addressed that risk at minimal cost, and indeed no further debris has come through since the initial breach.

“That option wasn’t properly assessed. Island Roads and the Isle of Wight Council are not factoring the cost to businesses into their decision-making, and that is exactly one of the things the newly formed VRG will be pushing for going forward.”