5.1
The 1999 Household Survey highlighted that residents continue to place a high level of importance in maintaining and improving Bournemouth’s Seafront. Lifeguarding, seafront management, beach cleaning and toilet provision all being placed in residents’ top 10 cultural service priorities. Since 1994, surveys have also acknowledged a dramatic growth in eating out and visitor attractions, as well as an ever-extending season at the Seafront.
5.2
Bournemouth Seafront continues to be one of the town’s greatest assets which has established it as a major seaside resort, with lengthy sandy beaches, leisure, entertainment, catering services and a commitment to a safe, clean and sustainable environment.
5.3 Leisure & Recreation
5.3.1 Events
The Bournemouth Pier Approach area is an extremely popular venue for staging large events and festivals, such as Friday Night Fireworks, car rallies and promotional events. Since 1996 there has been increasing demand to host commercial events by major companies in order to promote products. This has had both financial benefit to the Council, and added to the portfolio of events on the Seafront.
Efforts have been made to extend events away from the honeypot site of Bournemouth Pier Approach. Boscombe Pier and the immediately surrounding area have developed into a sporting events venue, in recent years hosting volleyball championships and lifeguard championships. In addition, the Undercliff Drive car park is being offered as an alternative venue during the peak season and shoulder periods for events including car and motorcycle enthusiast group meetings.
Events such as National Powerboat Racing Championships as well as surfing contests have been hosted at the seafront for a number of years.
5.3.2 Seafront Chalets, Beach Huts, Deckchairs, Sunbeds and Parasols
The Seafront has approximately 1,500 beach hut sites and 572 seafront chalets, all of which have a significant impact on the appearance of the Seafront. Demand remains high for these traditional seaside facilities, with in excess of 800 people on the Council's waiting list for a beach hut site.
Considerable effort has been made since 1996 to increase the income generated by seafront chalets, targeting less popular areas through improving access, chalet quality, discount hire charges and additional promotional marketing.
The future demand for chalets may be affected by changing visitor patterns, with an increasing bias toward shorter breaks, potentially reducing the core weekly hire business. It is vital that the situation is monitored and the Council reacts to any changing demand so as to protect the revenue stream. An additional factor has been the increasing maintenance cost associated with seafront chalets, many constructed in the early 20 th Century. This is in part being addressed by the use of modern (sympathetic) building materials and regular reviews of income trends (both spatially and seasonally) in order to effectively manage the service.
The demand for deckchairs, sunbeds and parasols has remained stable since 1996, proving that this traditional seaside service remains popular with Bournemouth’s many visitors.
5.3.3 Recreation
Seafront recreational activities need to be managed carefully in order to minimise potential conflict between different Seafront user groups. Continual dialogue and study of recreational user groups is vital in order to promote the enjoyment of this unique environment.
The Cultural Strategy highlights the opportunity on the Seafront to develop links with Exercise Prescription and Healthy Active Lifestyle Programmes. Development of measured distances for walking along the promenade could be one such small initiative. The Seafront Management Team already undertake programmes and initiatives for promoting skincare via Lifeguards, Seafront Inspectors and the Beach Games Club Leaders. It is proposed that further links to health improvement and social inclusion initiatives should be developed with key partners both within the Council and the community.
(a) Water based recreation
Bournemouth Seafront has limited facilities for water sports in particular changing and launching facilities.
The Hengistbury Head Outdoor Education and Field Studies Centre remains an important facility, principally utilised by schools for dinghy sailing and canoeing.
The Westover Rowing Club facilities at West Beach are in need of refurbishment and the Council will continue to liaise with and support the club to develop a new facility at an alternative Seafront site. This would release the current prime site for alternative use as an additional leisure attraction for the seafront.
There continues to be expansion of informal water based activities such as surfing and body boarding in the Bournemouth Pier, Boscombe Pier and Southbourne areas, and sea angling at all parts of the Seafront. Additionally a significant number of people partake in windsurfing at various locations along the Seafront. Swimming also remains a popular activity.
Proposals are being progressed for the construction of an artificial surf reef at Boscombe, which has generated significant interest. This provides a real opportunity to expand water sport participation at the Seafront, and to stimulate regeneration of Boscombe Seafront with associated retail, catering and demand for accommodation.
Since 1996 a greater variety of recreational pursuits have become evident, including kite surfing and wake boarding. With greater variety comes greater management challenge.
There is a need to provide improved infrastructure for water sports, particularly changing rooms, and perhaps a purpose built slipway for small to medium sized sail and powered craft and to produce zoning proposals for the seafront.
(b) Land based recreation
Traditional types of seaside recreation, such as walking, jogging and volleyball remain popular at the Seafront. However, since 1996 diversity in recreational activities has increased. These include paragliding, micro-scootering and cycling.
5.3.4 Catering and Retail Concessions
Tourism and Seafront Services continues to manage a number of catering contracts and licenses offering a mixture of cafés, restaurants and takeaways along the Seafront.
Since 1996 the Tourism and Seafront Services Business Unit has taken on additional catering responsibilities.
Following the re-integration of Bournemouth Services, the Business Unit now directly operates the Best Break Takeaway in Pier Approach, the Pier Café and Bar, Showbar and Café at the Russell-Cotes Art Gallery and Museum.
Significant further private sector investment has been achieved since 1996, including the new attractions of the Oceanarium, Hot Rocks Surf Bistro, the Waterfront Development and the West Beach fish Restaurant and Vesuvio, Italian Restaurant at Alum Chine.
There continues to be a number of other, predominantly non-catering, activities provided under license. These include pedalo hire, sail boat hire, personal watercraft hire, and a wide variety of seaside craft stalls, trading primarily during the summer in the Pier Approach area.
It is still as important for all these contracts and licenses to be effectively monitored with agreed quality standards. The Council is committed to working together with contractors and license holders to maintain standards and develop new products on a joint venture basis.
The maintenance of Seafront building stock is very important. With constraints on Council spending there is an accumulating backlog of maintenance requirements. It will be necessary to endeavour to attract private capital investment for substantial refurbishment, particularly at the West Beach Happyland complex and Bournemouth Pier. At Boscombe reinvestment in the Pier and surrounding area is being outlined through an enabling housing development in the adjacent Honeycombe Chine. In developing these sites it is vital that proposals do not compromise the environmental quality of the Seafront.
In the absence of suitable private sector interest it will be imperative for the Council to consider investment itself to sustain the performance of the seafront, its most strategically important asset.
5.3.5 Attractions
Bournemouth Pier remains the major landmark in the town, offering catering, bars, amusements, boat trips, sea angling and simply promenading. Visitor numbers have increased from 300,000 in 1996 to 500,000 in 2000.
Three amusement arcades are located on the Seafront, one of which, Pier Approach, is operated directly by the Council. Careful management of the Pier Approach arcade is vital in order to maiintain interest in the facility and maximise the income to the Council.
Since 1996 two major wet weather attractions have been constructed on the Seafront. The Bournemouth Oceanarium and Imax Cinema are both located adjacent to the Bournemouth Pier Approach.
Identification of potential development sites for additional wet weather attractions is required at the Seafront.
