Delayed Weymouth inner harbour wall repair work completed

Engineers have now finished an 'extensive' amount of work to the sea defences at North Quay that will increase flood protection and reduce the risk of flooding to nearby properties.

Repairs were initially meant to be completed in the spring, however, the work took 'longer than anticipated,' and went on over the summer.

The footpath on the harbour side of North Quay was closed during repairs but has now reopened.

In February, a 50-metre section of the wall collapsed leaving the green and white railings along side the wall suspended in mid-air as the wall beneath sagged into the water.

READ: Dorset Council 'frustrated' by quayside regeneration delays

New railings along the harbour wall at North Quay in Weymouth (Image: Martin Lea)

This led to an additional £70,000 being added on to the project which was already costed at around £1 million.

It was then said that the work would be completed by the end of June, however, 'unknown' utility services were found on the site at North Quay which contractors had to treat as 'live' until it was determined that they did not pose a risk.

READ: End of Weymouth harbour wall repairs delayed until September

This meant that work originally expected to be completed in the spring was not completed until now.

Despite the delays, the council has said the the cost of the repairs remained within it's £1.5 million budget through the almost £19.5 million Levelling Up Fund government grant it received in 2022.

READ: How the £19m levelling up money will be spent in Weymouth

The new wall will help prevent flooding of nearby properties (Image: Martin Lea)

A Dorset Council spokesperson said: "The work to harbour wall four at North Quay is now complete and the footpath has reopened.

"While the work took longer than anticipated, our engineers kept the project on budget. 1.5m was allocated for this work in 2022 through our Levelling Up funding bid. 

"We'd like to thank local people and businesses for their patience while we carried out this essential work.

"The work was primarily to strengthen, repair and prevent failure of the wall."

READ: North Quay council offices finally demolished

The old council offices were demolished as part of the £19.5 million redevelopment of Weymouth's waterfront economy (Image: Andy Jones)

The council said that work to the harbour wall included extensive masonry repairs, replacing and repairing the concrete capping beam, a replacement of a 15m section of wall that was beyond repair, repairing and replacing handrails, void filling, utility improvements and footpath improvements.

The repairs form part of a larger regeneration of the harbour and quay which has also included the demolition of the former council offices at North Quay, which has been turned into a temporary car park.

The space has been earmarked for development with luxury accommodation and commercial units being touted as a possible use for the space, however, no decision has been made yet.

Other projects  include the installation of utility infrastructure and repairs to the harbour walls at the Peninsula, land assembly within the town centre which involves purchasing long leasehold interests such as Weymouth Bowl which the council has already acquired.

This will help generate fresh development opportunities and regain management of the land that the council already owns.