PRESS RELEASE

14th March 2011. For immediate release

An Improved Scheme for the Isles of Scilly Link saves around £25m compared with Cornwall Council scheme, provides a stimulus for economic growth and regeneration, makes the most of local resources, conserves coastal heritage, and dramatically reduces the risk to the Council and to council-tax payers.

In response to calls from the Department of Transport (DfT) for budget cuts and rumours that Cornwall Council are about to commit additional Council funds to the scheme, the Penzance Business Network (PzBN) are calling on councillors and the public to support a fully-costed alternative Isles of Scilly Link scheme that would address key issues in Penzance, win DfT support, and place Cornwall Council tax payers at less risk.

The full proposal is attached or can be downloaded from

http://www.pzbnetwork.com/option-pz/option-pz-plus-with-unit-18.html

It involves retaining the tried and tested two ship approach, consolidating freight away from the congested and historic harbour, a new passenger terminal on an existing harbour-side site, and a long-term strategy for sea defences that addresses sea-level rise without harming the town’s coastal economic assets.

Cornwall Council’s own negotiations with the Department for Transport appear deadlocked, with the Council refusing to modify their proposal and saying that if it isn’t accepted they will walk away. However, the DfT is refusing to fund the existing scheme to the extent that the Council wants -

Read more: An Improved Scheme for the Isles of Scilly Link

We read the story ‘Ferry terminal jobs in jeopardy amid fear of delay and fund cuts’ that ran in the

Western Morning News on Tuesday 1st February with great interest.

It is quite within the power of Cornwall Council to resolve the funding questions surrounding the IoS

Link Project. They need to climb down from what is increasingly being seen as an over-ambitious

and extremely expensive proposal that is misaligned with the real requirements of a sustainable Link

to the IoS, and out of step with the current economic climate.

They need to adopt an approach accepting that an improved Scilly ferry link can be affordably

funded and successfully run using re-fitted second-hand vessels that operate within the existing

infrastructure of the harbours in Penzance and St Mary’s, and can be serviced locally in the

Penzance dry dock. There are immediate savings in the region of £18m if this approach is adopted,

and the service continues to run using separate passenger and freight vessels.

Read more: PzBN Ferry funding and jobs threat

Request for Pre-application Advice

OPTION PZ - PENZANCE HARBOUR, PENZANCE, CORNWALL

Thank you for consulting us over the plans for the above site. On the basis of thelatest information about the proposals, received by us on and detailed below, I offerthe following advice.

Summary

The proposals are for:

• the restoration / repair of the grade listed II listed South Quay
• the demolition of the existing Meadery / Green Shed building and its replacement with a new terminal building
• a linear extension of the South Quay

We have also been provided with information:

• discussing possible alternatives for future sea defences
• suggesting some works to the North Arm
• suggesting the possibility of integrating the proposals with wider initiatives in the area (such as the Coinagehall Site), to reinforce the Harbour as a "destination"

The proposals affect the grade II listed Quay, the setting of a number of listed structures and are within Penzance Conservation Area.

English Heritage Advice

We welcome the proposals to restore / repair the historic Quay. We do not object to the principle of the demolition of the Meadery / Green Shed building, nor to the proposed design of the terminal building. A robust and well detailed building would not be out of place in such a setting, although the detailing of signage, hard-landscaping, etc will contribute significantly towards the success of any proposals.

Read more: Option Pz wins English Heritage Approval!

AN ALTERNATIVE scheme to regenerate Penzance Harbour has been submitted for pre-planning by a group of local businesses.

The Penzance Business Network (PBN) filed a pre- planning application on Option PZ to Cornwall Council last week.

The group hopes the move will help it to open up a dialogue with the council's planning officers, conservation specialists and English Heritage.

Read more: Businesses reveal their own plans to improve harbour

Following the Cornwall Council Strategic Planning Committee’s decision to recommend Listed Building Consent be approved for Option A.

The Penzance Business Network remains extremely concerned that Route Partnership could still fail to gain the final consents it requires before the Department for Transport and Convergence funds are released for the IoS Link Project.

The main problems still lie with the Penzance Passenger & Freight Terminal building and the related sea defences works proposed for the grade II listed South Pier.

Cornwall Council’s Strategic Planning Committee were minded, on the 8^th March 2010, to recommend that the Secretary of State grants listed building consent for the Option A scheme.  However, there is a great deal of opposition to this from advisory bodies such as English Heritage, the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment, the Campaign to Protect Rural England, and from the Penzance Town Council, local opposition groups and individuals.

Read more: Businesses voice 'major concerns' over loss of Scilly Link

This week Cornwall Council was granted listed building consent for their Penzance ferry terminal plans. Penzance Business Network has been following the ferry link proposals with interest. Chairman, Paul Newport commented as follows:

"It’s clear for all to see that Penzance is starting to move forward and Penzance Business Network is looking ahead to a period of development and growth for the town. This will benefit everyone who lives and works in Penzance and the surrounding area.

Read more: News release 9th March 2010