Notice of beach closure for annual levelling works
Weymouth Town Council is giving advance notice about the annual beach levelling works which will take place between Monday 16th and Friday 20th February.
Weymouth Central Beach will be closed between the Pavilion Theatre end up to the Jubilee Clock from 8am on Monday 16th February. The temporary closure will remain in place overnight until Friday 20th February when the beach is due to reopen at 7pm. This is to allow the diggers on to the beach so the levelling works can be carried out safely.
Chair of the Environment and Services Committee, Cllr Matt Bell, said: “Over the autumn and winter months much of the sand is moved around in seasonal storms. During the spring tide, when more of the beach is exposed, this allows the team to get the diggers further on to the beach area to set about restoring it for the summer season.
“And with three back-to-back named storms already this year, the sand has moved even further up the beach, so this vital work to level the sand needs to be carried out now ahead of Weymouth’s busy season.”
Entry/exit points from the beach will be barriered off for safety while the heavy-duty machinery is operating on the beach with signs in place to inform the public about the temporary closure.
The beach works must take place at low tide as we need as much of the beach exposed to be able to move all the sand that needs to be moved. The works must take place in February as local businesses who are sited on the sand in spring and summer require access to the reconstructed beach from early March to ensure they have the time to set up their businesses (buildings, decking areas, retail and catering equipment) in time for Easter in early April. The works cannot take place in January due to the significantly higher risk of storms which would not only mean greater risk for our contractors, but also greater risk to the sand being removed again before Easter. As we need to coincide with the optimal spring tide before tenants return to the beach, the week of the 16th February is the prime window of opportunity.
Some work will take place in advance to remove some of the seaweed that was washed up in recent storms, although the beach will not need to be closed for this work to be carried out.
Apologies for any inconvenience caused while the work is carried out.
Residents are advised to check Weymouth Town Council’s social media for any updates about the work.
ENDS
Notes to Editors
For the latest information and updates about Weymouth Town Council visit the website, Facebook, and Instagram.