North East seaside communities given cash boost

Oct 21 2008 by Tony Henderson, The Journal

A WORLD-FIRST artificial reef off the North East coast came a step closer last night after two seaside communities were handed a cash boost towards their revival.

Berwick won a maximum £1m grant and North Tyneside receives nearly £30,000 in the latest round of funding from the Government’s Sea Change programme, which aims to reinvigorate our resorts by investment in culture and heritage.

Berwick’s £1m will go towards the restoration and conversion of the town’s Dewars Lane Granary into a cultural and exhibition venue.

And the £29,525 given to North Tyneside Council will be used for studies on the feasibility of the artificial reef as part of a wider costal zone scheme called Project Trident.

The reef could provide a focus for a range of water-based activities including diving, angling, surfing and marine ecology, creating exciting opportunities for tourism, businesses, leisure and recreation and marine ecology.

Project Trident is also looking at how finally to complete the long-running restoration of the Victorian listed Tynemouth Station and how best to enhance the seafront promenade linking Whitley Bay, Cullercoats and Tynemouth.

The Berwick granary award brings the total funding pledged towards the transformation of the derelict 239-year-old building to £4.2m and means the project needs just £600,000 more to reach its target.

More talks will now be held with local backers to see if the final funding gap can be bridged.

Finance already committed to the project, which unlocked the door to Sea Change money, has come from One NorthEast via Northumberland Strategic Partnership, English Heritage, the Northern Rock Foundation, Berwick Council, Northumberland County Council, the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Youth Hostel Association and donations from trusts and individuals.

Chairman of Berwick Preservation Trust Jamie Andrew said: “This is absolutely fantastic news which brings our vision ever closer to reality. The decision by the Government to award the highest possible grant is a clear sign that it believes in the project.

“It was grain that helped to make Berwick prosperous and a new Dewar’s Lane Granary will bring economic benefits to the whole of Berwick.”

The trust’s executive officer John Smithson said: “We are taking nothing for granted, but having now got so close we are even more determined to complete the financial jigsaw and restore a very important piece of Berwick’s heritage.” The granary will be converted into six floors with an arts and exhibition centre, a bistro with outside courtyard seating, meeting rooms and a 42-bed youth hostel.

The listed granary and its distinctive 1.2 metre leaning walls were painted by artist LS Lowry in 1936.

Berwick Borough Council leader Isabel Hunter said: “The new granary will help transform the historic quayside area in Berwick.”

North Tyneside Council’s director of development Martin Swales said: “Project Trident sums up exactly what we are trying to achieve. It includes the world-first multifunctional artificial reef proposal that would truly put North Tyneside on the visitors’ map.

“It will help us to deliver the completion of the restoration of Tynemouth Station – an important part of our heritage – and it proposes an exciting way forward to utilise a promenade through Whitley Bay, Cullercoats and Tynemouth to ensure all three communities can benefit from increased mobility of tourists.

“Now we must work with our partners to carry out the feasibility study and take this project forward to seek the major funding needed.”

Project Trident has the support of a range of partners including English Heritage, One NorthEast, Newcastle University and the Scottish Association for Marine Science.

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