A MOVE is being made to update legislation covering Weymouth Harbour so parcels of land can be sold off as part of the Pavilion peninsula redevelopment.

The harbour gateway is a key regeneration site, and has been earmarked by Weymouth and Portland Borough Council as a 'leisure zone' with all-weather family attractions.

There will also be restaurants, hotels, possibly some housing, car parking, areas for watersports and a 'fisheries zone'.

It is hoped construction work can start this year.

Weymouth and Portland Borough Council needs to be ready to deal with land issues ahead of the development of the site.

In order to do this, it needs to make a Harbour Revision Order (HRO) to 'modernise and consolidate' harbour legislation, some of which dates from the 1820s.

A HRO would make the management and governance of the harbour less complex, and make it easier to dispose of land no longer needed for port use, councillors will be told.

The ability to deal with this issue is "time critical" as the council does not want any legal hurdles to delay the development.

Updated legislation to address 'shortcomings' in the current set-up would also help the council properly control and charge for harbour facilities – currently there is limited powers to deal with jet-skis, for example.

A special meeting of the Harbour Management Board has been called so the HRO can be prepared and eventually submitted to the government's Marine Management Organisation. The application will have to be agreed by the management committee and full council.

A report to the Harbour Board meeting on Friday, February 2 says statutory harbour legislation is 'complex and fragmented' which makes it difficult when understanding and complying with relevant powers and duties.

The report says: "The advice and support of specialist marine lawyers is required to make the application process as straightforward as possible and a

budget is required to obtain this advice. An application fee of £4,000 also has to be paid to the Marine Management Organisation.

"Delegated authority is sought for officers in consultation with councillors to determine the appropriate wording for the HRO based on legal advice. The need to seek an HRO will have an impact on the delivery timetable for the peninsula development and therefore time is of the essence."