Fuming residents and business owners have blasted plans for a new coastwatch lookout station on Tankerton Slopes which they fear will spoil their sea views.

The proposed first-floor extension - approved by Canterbury City Council last week - will be built on top of the existing public toilets at Priest and Sow Corner, Tankerton.

But supporters of the proposals say the move will increase the chances of saving a life and crucially improve visibility.

It will provide a new home for the Whitstable National Coastwatch Institution (NCI) - which currently has a hut based on the seafront.

Residents in Marine Parade - where houses fetch as much as £1.8 million - fear their stunning seaside vistas will be ruined by the development.

Local businesses will also be impacted. Customers in the Seaview Café, which sits behind the toilets and is said to have “the best breakfast in town”, may no longer be able to actually see the Channel.

Owner Debbie Clarke, 58, said she was “annoyed” nobody had contacted her about the plans.

She said: “Nobody has told me - I found out about it from another resident two months ago. I have tried to phone the council but nobody has got back to me.

“If it is going to be an eyesore, it will affect my business. I would have thought I would be the most important person to inform about this.

“I am not totally against it but it would have been nice to know exactly what they are doing. This is what has annoyed me. Show me pictures, just out of courtesy.”

Despite Ms Clarke’s claims, the council’s committee report claims: “Neighbouring occupiers adjoining the site were notified in writing and a site notice was displayed adjacent to the application site.”

Under the plans, the building will include weatherboard cladding, a glass reinforced plastic roof, a solar panel and a weather station.

Nikki Billington, owner of JoJo’s restaurant, said: “In terms of views, of course it is going to affect the people in our restaurant. If it is a necessity, which they seem to think it is, what can you do?”

Jules Serkin, 61, a nearby resident, has slammed the development, which will obstruct the view from her home.

She said: “They’re planning a double storey building in front of the Seaview Café - so it will no longer be a sea view café.

“Already on the Tankerton seafront the houses are changing. We have got lots of new-builds and we have lost a lot of the old character houses.

“I think to build a second storey on Tankerton Slopes is a precedent which should never happen.”

NCI’s Whitstable lookout station currently has about 40 volunteers who provide visual surveillance along the coast.

The current hut on Tankerton seafront has no electricity, toilets or running water, and only a small heater provides warmth during cold weather.

Station manager John Frost said: “It is really a beach hut so we are restricted by the facilities we can use there.

“It will give us a far better vantage point which means we can see more. We don’t want to offend anyone, we just want to serve the community.”

Asked whether moving to the new location will increase the chances of saving a life, he said: “With the new vantage point, it will make it more possible.”

Cllr Ian Thomas, who backed the plans, does not believe any objections are “sufficient” but admitted the extension would stand out like a “sore thumb”.

He said: “It is not the perfect place and it doesn’t look good. But I couldn’t put a cost on saving a life.

“If someone could find a better location, I would support it.”

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