Work has finally begun to remove a stretch of hated seafront hoardings around a now-scrapped controversial development site.

The enormous barriers surrounding Princes Parade in Hythe will be taken down over the coming days, starting on the canal side of the plot.

The land was previously earmarked for development with 150 homes, a leisure centre, and a hotel under the previous Conservative-led council.

But the new Green-Lib Dem coalition which took over Folkestone and Hythe District Council (FHDC) last May axed the proposal following a pre-election promise.

Once removed, they will be replaced by a 1.2m perimeter fence made of wire mesh stretched between wooden posts to restrict access to the former landfill site, where contamination from its previous use is known.

Douglas Wade was one campaigner who welcomed the latest moment at the Princes Parade site.

He said: “Well, finally, everybody has seen sense, and we've achieved victory.

“The site was a huge toxic dump of asbestos and other dangerous materials. It was not suitable for development, so the idea of digging into it was extremely foolish.

“This is a symbolic victory for the people of Hythe, Seabrook and Sandgate who have been fighting this for years and years.

“The Tories should never have pressed ahead with such a stupid project.”

During the removal and new fencing installation at Princes Parade, council officers and contractors will be working alongside an ecologist to ensure badger setts and other wildlife habitats are safeguarded.

The previous administration reported it would cost £100,000 to remove the current hoardings, which cost £300,000 to install.

The bright white barriers - previously covered in graffiti calling it a “Tory crime scene” and slated as looking like Belfast’s “peace walls” - require £30,000 worth of annual maintenance.

FHDC papers detail the new fencing will cost £70,000 to install, with a further £30,000 contingency to cover any vandalism or maintenance of the new barriers.

A decision for the future use of the area is set to be informed through public consultation.

No formal date has been set but it is expected to take place in late summer/autumn this year, once the new barriers have been installed.

Cllr Jim Martin (Green) said the work starting on the hoardings has put Hythe's future in the residents' hands.

He said: “It was the first thing on our agenda for the Lib Dems, the Greens, and the Labour group to get the hoardings down.

“The site had been stopped, effectively, as an unviable scheme, and these hoardings were just a hangover for the mistakes of the past.

“I'm sure that a lot of people in Hythe will be very pleased to see the back of these hoardings.

“Once we get the hoardings down and the fence up, we’ll have a consultation. It’s going to be a blank sheet of paper and it’s going to let the residents help inform the future of Hythe.”

Lesley Whybrow is one of the founding members of the Save Princes Parade Group which has campaigned to stop the development since 2012.

After their long-term effort, Mrs Whybrow would like to see the site returned to the green space it once was.

She said, “We made huge efforts, doing a lot of leafleting, setting up a website, holding protests, and writing a lot of letters. We objected to everything.

“I’m hugely relieved. I never thought we would get to this stage. We had to go to the extremes to get control of the council, but we did it.

“Personally, I want it to stay as wild as possible to benefit wildlife and biodiversity, but if we could have some public access, that would be a bonus.”

KentOnline had previously reported that once removed, the hoardings will be moved to the 10,000-home Otterpool Park ‘garden town’ site at the former Folkestone Racecourse, where they will be “stored and used as required”.