Plans for a pier cable car, a boat service to Southend and a giant statue of the sea god Neptune are just some of the ideas which have been put forward to boost the town’s regeneration.

An appeal for suggestions was made last week by former councillor Peter Vickery-Jones, who is now the interim chairman of the Coastal Community Team.

The team has been set up as a part of a government initiative to give communities a share of a £90 million pot for schemes to boost local economies.

After just a week, Mr Vickery-Jones says he has received dozens of ideas on the community team’s website for potential projects to transform Herne Bay.

Business advisor Nigel Hancock posted several ideas, and asked: “How about a giant statue of King Neptune?”

The statue would link with the Neptune Harbour and Neptune’s Arm, in dedication to the Roman sea god, and could look like a new Colossus of Rhodes.

Others posted their thoughts for boosting the town’s pier, with one person suggesting relaunching the boat trips to Southend in Essex, and another calling for a camera obscura.

Another person posted the need to improve the pier as an attraction, saying: “The pier is our heritage and projects should be looked at to transform it.

“An idea which seems to have some support is a cable car arrangement out and around the old pier head, similar to the Thames crossing at Greenwich. This has to be one of the most practical and least-costly ideas around.”

Others have looked at the importance of the Memorial Park, with a need to improve access to the tennis courts after the recent charging fiasco.

One person added: “It is massively under-utilised. I wonder if perhaps we should look at major concerts and open-air events as a way of attracting tourists and providing a sense of pride for residents?”

People also suggested putting in a huge sand pit for children to play in, while others called for a boating lagoon behind the beach.

Some argued for better information to be provided for tourists, such as new information boards at the railway station, and volunteers in T-shirts to work weekends and bank holidays to answer visitor’s questions and direct them around the town.

There were also proposals for a local history centre for people to trace their family lineage, and another to put a plinth in the town centre, similar to the one in Trafalgar Square, where artists could display sculpture work.

Mr Vickery-Jones said: “We’re bidding for the £10,000 start-up to get things going, and this could potentially open the gates to much more.

“The £90 million sum was put aside in this year’s budget and has been added to what is already there, so we could be potentially talking about projects worth millions of pounds.

“There are huge amounts of money available if we can demonstrate that there’s a regeneration scheme here and the community is all working together.”

To get involved or to submit your ideas, visit www.hernebycoastalcommunityteam.org/ideas.