Radical plans to dramatically transform Herne Bay seafront have been revealed.

Town councillors Andrew Cook and Joe Howes have put together an ambitious scheme to overhaul the coastline between the pier and Neptune car park.

Among the proposals is a £5 million marina for 150 boats in front of the bandstand, which would be fitted with a retractable roof.

Scroll down to see a graphic of the plans

Funding for the scheme is yet to be secured, but Cllr Cook hopes cash will soon be found.

He told the Herne Bay Gazette: “The city council is working with us to lay out the plan which is not financed whatsoever at this stage.

“But once you lay down the plan, you have got something for everyone to start getting into.

“It’s about being inventive. No doubt people will say it’s pie in the sky but if you don’t have the plans down you are never going to get anywhere.”

Cllr Cook (Con) says the beach between the pier and Neptune car park would be dug up to make way for the marina.

The reclaimed land would then be put to the left of the pier to create a water sports hub, boating pool and skate park.

The existing promenade and gardens along the seafront would remain untouched.

Cllr Cook added: “The big thing that will make the difference to the whole of Herne Bay is the marina.

“That will make the difference and it’s probably the most difficult to achieve because of the money that’s involved.

“The big thing that will make the difference to the whole of Herne Bay is the marina..." - Cllr Andrew Cook

“All of the other bits are fairly small and can be chipped away at as you go through.

“The marina will be like the jewel in the crown.”

Cllr Cook says in an ideal world the marina would be open by 2020, with a gate to control water level fitted to the entrance.

He hopes that, once built, it will “progressively evolve” to reach the full length of the old pier, taking 15 to 20 years over three stages.

It would also become a tidal, heat transfer and solar power station in later years.

Other parts of the scheme – including a new toilet block, merry-go-round, beach play area and water jet feature – could be finished within two years if funding is found.

Cllr Cook said: “This will be part of a total plan that will incorporate tourist attraction, increased shopping facilities, increased housing, increased schools and educational facilities, parking and more.

“Historically we have been named a one-day stop town, but we intend to change this to a four to seven-day stay.

“We will of course need to increase facilities for quality accommodation.

“The next trick is get everything moving at once so the total plan becomes viable.

“No part of the plan is set in stone and all the ideas have been collected over the past four years from local people.”

Shelters along the seafront would also be transformed into retail kiosks as part of the proposals, with parking for motorbikes and overnight campervans to be added near the Neptune car park.

The plans have been supported by Herne Bay’s councillors.

Cllr Cook added: “All of this stuff we are proposing is what people have said they have wanted to see.

“If anyone grumbles, there will be other people that are for it.

“I am not ashamed to say we might not get it all done, but if we get half done it will be great.

“If we get half way that’s better than sitting on our backsides doing nothing.

“All we have done is to put them into one coherent plan – we welcome positive criticism as we need to get this right.”

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SIR ROGER GALE'S VIEW

Herne Bay MP Sir Roger Gale, pictured on the seafront, has backed the plans.

He told the Gazette this week: “I think Andrew has come up with a very achievable and exciting set of proposals.

“Dreams have to be turned into reality – if we don’t start with the dreams you don’t get anywhere.

“I saw this plan on the back of an envelope a few weeks ago at one of my surgeries – it is achievable.

“It takes the political will to do it and I think from Canterbury City Council it is there.”

"I think, for Herne Bay as a town, its time has come..." - MP Sir Roger Gale

Mr Gale said digging up the beach between the pier and Neptune car park could spark some reaction: “There are people who will say we are losing a bit of beach but actually I thought about it and no one really sits on that beach.

“It takes the finance to do it and it remains to be seen whether or not commercial investors will look at it.

“But I think it’s a very significant piece of work and it’s really exciting. I think, for Herne Bay as a town, its time has come. It was a significant seaside resort at one stage and I think the time is right again now.”

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FUNDING

Although no cash to fund the scheme has yet been found, Cllr Cook is confident money will come in.

He said: “People need to step forward, take on the plans and go for it.

“If people really like the idea of the bandstand being covered that could be done for £300,000 to £400,000 – it’s achievable.

“We might get an interested party to operate the marina but that’s not set in stone.
“As we develop some of the buildings along the seafront there may be some section 106 money flying around.

“Possibly the Herne Bay Coastal Community could step in – there’s a large sum of money floating around there.”

Cllr Cook said finding funding for Herne Bay was difficult: “One of our big problems is the fact that we are bolted to the side of Canterbury and Whitstable.

“When it comes to funding in deprived towns around the coast, government looks to us as part of Canterbury and Whitstable.

“Unfortunately for us, that financially moves us up into a different category and somewhere like Margate or Ramsgate might get the funds because they are classed as deprived.

“Once you lay these plans out on the table, you have got somewhere to go with it.”

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CITY COUNCIL COMMENT

City council spokesman Rob Davies says authority bosses will look at the plans in more detail.

He said: “We are aware that some local councillors have been looking at this project for a little while now, but these are the first sketched out plans we have seen.

“Clearly it is still early days and there is much more work to do, but we are always keen to look at schemes that help to regenerate and improve the district.

“Some of the particular issues that we would need to assess closely would be funding, how this scheme affects the sea defences and land ownership.

“We’ll be sitting down with the people behind this over the next few weeks and getting into more detail.”