Boscombe surf reef’s opening day
SURFERS gave an optimistic but cautious thumbs-up to Boscombe’s surf reef
Boscombe surf reef team back in town
A SIGH of relief has greeted the return of the team tasked with building Europe’s first artificial surf reef in Boscombe.
Council votes down attempt to renegotiate reef deal
BOURNEMOUTH’S full council voted down an attempt to renegotiate the Boscombe surf reef contract with constructors ASR.
Food for thought at heart of Boscombe Spa project
EXCITING plans for a high-class restaurant have been unveiled as a key part of the Boscombe Spa regeneration scheme.
Contractors will return in April to finish Boscombe surf reef
The boss of contractors building Bournemouth’s artificial surf reef has pledged that they will be back to finish the job.
SURF REEF: we still back spa project
MOST councillors and business leaders still back the Boscombe Spa and Surf Reef project, despite concerns over some of the management.
SURF REEF: How much for surf pods? Council won't say
TAXPAYERS have been assured the entire £1.8million overspend will be covered by the sale of the new surf pods – so why can’t we be told how much they will cost?
SURF REEF: "We should have done a full survey on Overstrand building"
THERE was amazement as councillors found out how “thin” the management of the Surf Reef project has been.
Council officer should 'go quietly' over surf reef fiasco
AN opposition councillor has called for a senior council officer to “go quietly” following his apology for part of the Boscombe surf reef and spa development overspend.
SHOCK TWIST IN BOSCOMBE SURF REEF SAGA
THE contractors building Bournemouth’s surf reef are working on another project in India – and council chiefs are not convinced they will return to finish the job.
COUNCIL CHIEF: I'M SORRY FOR BOSCOMBE REEF PROJECT COST
A TOP council officer faced a grilling over the Boscombe Surf Reef and Spa – and apologised for part of the overspend last night as councillors reluctantly agreed to spend another £1.8m to keep...
‘Heads buried in sand’ over Boscombe surf reef claim
COUNCIL critics fear a special investigation into Bournemouth’s troubled surf reef project will prove nothing more than a “token effort”.
MORE GRIEF FOR BOSCOMBE'S PLANNED SURF REEF
Bournemouth Council is paying out nearly £40,000 to rent homes for workers – and they’re not even in the country!
MORE GRIEF FOR BOSCOMBE'S PLANNED SURF REEF
Bournemouth Council is paying out nearly £40,000 to rent homes for workers – and they’re not even in the country!
A worrying development on Boscombe regeneration scheme
IN a triumphant press release two years ago, Bournemouth council announced the Barratts deal would not only fund the entire Boscombe seafront development but also provide them with £300,000 in ...
BOURNEMOUTH SURF REEF PROJECT UP BY £1.8M
THE costs of the controversial Boscombe Spa Village project, including the surf reef, have spiralled by a third to more than £11 million.
Bournemouth council release report on overspend
The council's report on the rapidly rising budget
BOSCOMBE SURF REEF WOE
HOW much more can go wrong with Boscombe surf reef project, ask residents as councillors reveal the Overstrand will cost much more to develop than first thought.
BOSCOMBE SURF REEF WOE
HOW much more can go wrong with Boscombe surf reef project, ask residents as councillors reveal the Overstrand will cost much more to develop than first thought.
STRAIGHT OUT OF TOYTOWN
ON Monday November 24, the lead story in the Echo was a demand by Cllr Ben Grower for heads to roll over the surf reef fiasco.
STRAIGHT OUT OF TOYTOWN
ON Monday November 24, the lead story in the Echo was a demand by Cllr Ben Grower for heads to roll over the surf reef fiasco.
‘RESIGN OVER REEF’ CALL
Labour leader calls for heads to roll over Boscombe surf reef ‘debacle’
Councillor calls for resignations
THE overdue and over-budget Boscombe surf reef project has descended into such a farce that senior officers should be resigning from their jobs, a councillor has claimed. Labour group leader Cllr...
Surf reef delay could mean the end for traders
Hoteliers and traders in Boscombe, buoyed up by the prospect of Europe’s first artificial surf reef on their doorstep, say they could be forced out of business by the time the £2.68 million proje...
Slow work could mean the end for traders
Hoteliers and traders in Boscombe, buoyed up by the prospect of Europe’s first artificial surf reef on their doorstep, could be forced out of business by the time the £2.68 million project is compl...
Work halts on reef until April
EUROPE’S first artificial surf reef will not be completed until next September.
Work stops for winter
Work on the major tourist attraction at Boscombe seafront has been suspended for the winter and will not resume until April. There had been hopes the £2.68 million reef would be finished this aut...
How I ended a bleeping loser
A SMALL hard ball, two racquets, a walled area the size of a large master bedroom and two men hell bent on thrashing the bejesus out of each other.
Reef may not be finished until new year
EUROPE’S first artificial surf reef may not be completed until the new year, it has been revealed, despite hopes that the major tourist attraction would be finished this autumn.
Reef may not be finished until New Year
EUROPE’S first artificial surf reef may not be completed until the new year, despite hopes that the major tourist attraction would be finished this autumn. The borough’s head of tourism, Mark Smi...
A second surf reef?
BOURNEMOUTH could be in line for a second surf reef if the one currently being constructed at Boscombe proves a success. A new reef could be installed at Southbourne, primarily to help protect the...
Council officers surf reef fact-finding mission Down Under cost £8,429
THREE Bournemouth council officers went on an 18-day visit to New Zealand and Australia to research the Boscombe Surf Reef - but didn't mention in it any of their reports.
Bad weather delays Boscomber surf reef
AFTER a successful start, work on the Boscombe surf reef has been temporarily suspended due to high winds.
Bad weather delays work
AFTER a successful start, work on the Boscombe surf reef has been temporarily suspended due to high winds. The team laid the first sections during the air festival but had to stop on Sunday and th...
Work begins on Europe's first surf reef
THE Boscombe surf reef is finally being laid on the seabed.
Work starts!
FROM 8am today the Boscombe surf reef is finally being laid on the seabed. “It’s D-Day,” said construction manager David Neilson on the eve of work. “We have done all the planning and this is the b...
The reef starts its journey
Giant cranes lifted and folded part of Europe’s first artificial surf reef onto a barge bound for Boscombe. The segment, measuring 131 ft and weighing five tonnes, was shackled and strapped before ...
The construction begins
Construction officially started on the first artificial surf reef in the northern hemisphere . ASR Limited began putting the reef together at a top secret site in Dorset
Accusations over spiralling costs
Cllr Ben Grower accused Bournemouth council officers of “having absolutely no what the costs of this project were” before embarking on it at yesterday’s meeting of the children and families service...
Costs shock
The reef will end up costing £2.68m, councillors are told. The increase is put down to delays and spiralling construction costs. It means the council will have to spend £974,000 intended for revam...
Fact-finding mission
THREE Bournemouth council officers went on an 18-day visit to New Zealand and Australia to research the Boscombe Surf Reef. They visited the headquarters of the eventual contract winner ASR, and ...
Delays warned
Councillors warn delays over gaining permission from Defra mean work will not be completed until Spring 2008. Residents say the 15,000 tonnes of sand waiting on the beach to be used in the construc...
WIPEOUT?
With work due to start in September, fishermen officially object to the reef on the grounds it will harm their trade. Councillors have to wait to see if Defra will grant them a licence for the sche...
Pirates? Not on our reef
The council agrees to four licences for surf schools at the new reef and no more. Three will only be valid for one year at a time and students will only be allowed in the water if the RNLI says con...
Moving forward
The deadline for judicial review passes without a challenge from the residents' association. The council pledges work will start in the autumn.
Plans are agreed
Bournemouth Borugh Council agrees to go ahead with the surf reef plans after the deadline for a judicial review passes and the scheme is heralded as "back on track." The surf reef is due for comple...
Judicial review threatens scheme
Boscombe Cliffs Residents Association threatens to take the council to judicial review over the plans for the surf reef and the rest of the planned £8m revamp of the seafront. They say the council ...
Not-so-new plans
The scheme is back before councillors virtually unchanged. Council officers say there is no need for better wet weather leisure facililites as surfers won't come when it rains - and will also not c...
Back to the drawing board
Plans to revamp Boscombe - of which the surf reef is part - are deferred by Bournemouth Borough Council because they're aren't good enough. Councillors want better leisure facilities and more parking.
Green light
Residents give councillors a round of applause after they agree to make the surf reef part of their plans to regenerate Boscombe seafront. There was no opposition to the plans despite earlier comp...
Back to the drawing board
Then Heritage minister Andrew McIntosh throws the scheme into turmoil when he announces that he considers the pier neck building worthy of listing. Two months later, the decision is confirmed and l...
Plans approved
Plans for 169 flats at Honeycombe Chine and an £8m development of Boscombe Overstrand, including a surf reef, are approved by Bournemouth's planners. Angry protestors storm out of the special plann...
No stalling
Calls to send the project back to the drawing board are rejected by councillors. Instead they agree to send the plans out to consultation by the whole of Bournemouth.
Plans revealed
The Daily Echo reveals the full plans for the Boscombe Spa Village development. The council's scheme includes a revamped pier, the reef and a sculpture park.
'We'll ask your opinions'
The council promises consultation over the transformation plans
Campaign groups formed
A pressure group called CREST is formed and lobbies the council for a reef. But Boscombe residents have their own plans and want the council to build a marina instead.
Two reefs? No chance
Residents at Southbourne lobby the council for a second reef on their stretch of coast. They say it would be a better way to stop erosion than adding shingle to the beach, which is the council's p...
Will the reef go to Newquay?
Newquay commissions a feasilbilty study with the same Australian oceanographer who is working on the Bournemouth sites. Councillors fear delays with the Bournemouth scheme - which is at risk becaus...
Hope still alive
Bournemouth Borough Council looks for another developer to buy a seafront site to finance the project after Charles Church pulls out. In the end Barratt Homes agrees to the deal.
Surfers: We won't strip in streets
Boscombe West Cllr Phil Carey says the surf reef will lead to lager-swilling teenagers 'stripping off in the streets'. Surfers fight back, saying the reef is vital for regenerating Boscombe.
Disaster strikes
At the last minute developer Charles Church pulls out of a housing deal with the council that would have financed the regeneration, including the surf reef. The plan was for Charles Church to lease...
Surfer's paradise
Australian professor Kerry Black , who has been carrying out the feasibility study, says there are two suitable sites, one at Boscombe and one at Southbourne.
Surf's Up?
Plans for an artificial reef that would make Bournemouth the surfing capital of the south are considered. Councillors agreed to spend £10,000 on a feasibility study into building the reef - expe...
