Colwyn Bay pier structural survey month away

Feb 25 2010 by Richard Evans, North Wales Weekly News

A STRUCTURAL survey to assess the safety of Colwyn Bay’s pier will not go ahead for at least a month, raising fears somebody could be killed by the creaking structure in the meantime.

Locked in a legal stalemate, the pier has not been properly maintained in terms of its upkeep and has now deteriorated to the point Conwy County Council has stepped in.

Since the summer of 2008, the derelict pier’s dilapidated state has worsened due to a court battle between former owner Steve Hunt and the council due to a business rates dispute.

Trustees Royce Peeling Green (RPG) have not invested in the pier’s maintenance and the council is to carry out a safety assessment, which won’t be carried out for four to six weeks.

Steve Hunt, the pier’s former owner, fears somebody could be killed by falling debris as the public are free to walk under the structure: “The council and RPG were notified by my solicitor and myself six months ago that the corner, where the bandstand used to be on the Old Colwyn side is dangerous,” he said.

“The worry is the cast iron railings and posts are extremely heavy, they are all connected together and if one goes they could all go. If anybody was underneath they would be killed instantly.

“Kids climb at the bottom of the pier and it is like a giant climbing frame. The Easter holidays are coming up, I wouldn’t like to see even a dog killed – it should be fenced off and signs put up. When Weston-Super-Mare burnt down it was fenced off the same day.”

Conwy County Borough Council refused to indicate the likely cost of the assessment but said the pier wouldn’t be looked at for at least a month.

Corporate director Ken Finch said: “The structural survey is expected to be undertaken in the next 4-6 weeks. After that a report will be prepared for the council and for those who control the pier to consider.

“The cost of engaging external surveyors is commercially sensitive at this time. The responsibility for erecting warning signs is a matter for those who control the pier.”

Manchester-based RPG weren’t able to comment.