1 week Ago By [email protected] (Sam Lennon)
Residents fear a village that has remained unchanged “since Victorian days” will be swamped by traffic if plans to install more beach huts go ahead. Dover District Council (DDC) wants to add 33 more huts to Kingsdown, near Deal, where 23 of the wooden sheds are already in place. But residents say the area, which has a number of narrow roads, will not be able to cope with the extra cars from visitors heading to the seafront.
About 100 neighbours attended a public meeting at their village hall last week to discuss the proposal, which is set to cost £130,000. Villager Elizabeth Monk, 92, says it is already “almost impossible” to park on busy weekends in the summer. “This is a very special village that has been like this since Victorian days,” she said.
“But people already park all over the village and I think it has become a danger to other people walking. “There is no room for traffic and all these things that go with it if they put in so many extra huts. “There are private roads that lead to the beach and they are just not fit for extra traffic.
” DDC is yet to reveal exactly where the beach huts will be erected, but it plans to bring up to 33 to the area, costing £3,000 to £5,000 each. Council documents prepared ahead of a recent cabinet meeting show there is a high demand for beach huts throughout the district and a similar scheme at St Margaret’s Bay in 2020 increased revenue for the authority. The report says if the scheme at Kingsdown goes ahead successfully, attempts will be made to provide more beach huts elsewhere in the district as long as there is demand.
But cabinet members voted to defer a decision until more information is provided. Mrs Monk’s son Michael, 72, fears the village will be “unsuitable for the numbers of people expected to come”. “Visiting drivers have no experience of these roads and there have already been accidents,” he said.
Fellow villager Deborah Moggach agreed, saying: “This area is an SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest) and a conservation area with unique flora and fauna. “This plan would decimate the area. “There is a huge amount of cars here anyway because of Airbnbs.
There is no space for more.” In a statement, a DDC spokesman said the authority “understands the unique appeal of beach huts in our beautiful seafront locations”. “We are set to make changes to the way we run huts in Kingsdown to allow more people to enjoy them and provide facilities in a way that’s fair and consistent across the district,” they said.
“Previously in Kingsdown, we leased out the plot only, and people were able to place their huts on site and renew at the end of a term. “Under the new process, we will own and maintain the beach huts, and are to lease out the huts for a fixed term to people on a waiting list, as happens in other areas within the district. “We are looking to purchase existing huts from owners, depending on condition and whether the owner would like to remove or leave their hut.
“No decisions have been made on any potential new huts, and any decision would be subject to planning permission, where all relevant planning matters and public comments would be taken fully into consideration.”.
