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Eastern Cliffs Esplanade Works Pass Key Milestone In Ventnor

Piling work as part of the Isle of Wight Council's project to restore sea defences at Ventnor's Eastern Cliffs Esplanade has reached the halfway stage.

The king piling has successfully passed the damaged section of seawall and is now protecting the collapsed section and the Southern Water main sewer. 

The project remains ahead of programme with 78 out of 152 king piles installed, helping to protect local homes and businesses.

Once the piling is complete later this year, the council's attention will turn to repairing the promenade to make it safe for people to use again.

The planned reopening date is currently spring 2024 however progress over the winter months will be heavily dependent on the weather.

While weather downtime has been factored into the programme, the site is very exposed and successive storms will present a challenge for the team.

Councillor Paul Fuller, Cabinet member responsible for coastal protection, said the council was extremely grateful for the support of Ventnor Town Council which has partnered on the project.

He added: "I'm delighted to report that progress continues ahead of schedule and that we have now passed a number of key milestones.

"As a result of the work completed so far we anticipate no further movement or damage to the current seawall which I'm sure is great news to the local community.

"I'd like to thank everyone for their patience, understanding and support during this very necessary work; we will continue to provide regular updates via our residents' newsletter and face-to-face community meetings which I know are very popular."

The council closed part of the esplanade last November after a large hole and cracks appeared in the seawall just beyond Ventnor skatepark.

More information about the project is available on the council's website.

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