Opinion: Dapdune Wharf – Opening Up Our River Should Have Begun Here

Published on: 17 Sep, 2013
Updated on: 17 Sep, 2013

Dapdune Wharf an island of tranquillity on our oft blighted river banks.

By Martin Giles

Riverside Dapdune Wharf is an island of tranquillity in our town. Once a bustling centre of barge construction, it is now a quiet and pretty relic, beautifully maintained by the National Trust.

Once a bustling scene of barge construction.

What a relief then for the trust and current visitors, enjoying the location’s semi rural feel, that the yellow plastic eyesore, an office block opposite, has disappeared. While it stood the best view of Dapdune Wharf was from the opposite bank with one’s back to the modern monstrosity.

It represented all that is the worst of the treatment of our riverside in Guildford. It might have been understandable for the Victorians, and those from earlier periods, to simply view the river as an industrial asset, a source of power to be exploited, but surely as we moved into the twentieth century there should have been more enlightened and imaginative views on how we could enjoy this natural amenity, aesthetically and for recreation.

The redevelopment of the site offered a chance to take a small step towards that goal. The ugly characterless office blocks could have been replaced with much needed housing that could have reflected the style of the Wharf cottages. They could have been pleasant to live in and enhanced the view.

Instead we are to see yet another office block emerge. It might not look as bad as the last one. It is hard to imagine that it could be. But it is unlikely to blend in, much less attract admiring glances.

We should not rush to condemn our local councillors and planning officers though. They are normally very constrained in their decisions. If an office block stood there before it is almost impossible to refuse an application to redevelop for a similar purpose.

And in all planning decisions is the threat of the Planning Inspectorate. From a range of nearly 200 miles they hang like the sword of Damocles over all our local planning decisions making them almost a matter of form, often to the puzzlement of both applicants and objectors who imagine councillors to have real discretion.

The yellow office buildings that fronted on to Walnut Tree Close, now demolished.

If this government really wants localism to blossom and save some money they could do a lot worse that shutting down this damaging agency. But of course they won’t because for all their fine words about devolving power downgrades they need the planning inspectorate to make sure that new houses, for an ever increasing population, are built and growth targets met, regardless of local sentiment.

There is no doubt this is a difficult problem and there is also no doubt that none of the main political parties really want to face up to it. I really hope that I am being too pessimistic, that our new local plan will be a template for consensual development that can open up our river as we all want.

I want to believe it but I can’t. The memory of one man from Bristol overriding a unanimous vision by our elected councillors over the development in Green Lane is still too fresh in my mind.

The surprisingly large site where the yellow plastic blocks once stood.

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