West Kirby Marine Lake Needs Urgent Repairs

Originally Posted by BBC News

The wall around West Kirby's Marine Lake needs urgent repair work and could be in danger of crumbling away into the water, according to a new report. Engineers have told Wirral Council that the 1,000m walkway around the lake is showing signs of age and may soon be too dangerous for visitors. The problems affect the inner wall, which was rebuilt in the 1980s but was only expected to last up to 25 years.

If the council approves the £750,000 repairs, work could start in November. It would finish in spring 2009, but the lake would probably have to close during that time. The issue will be considered by the council's cabinet later this month but the project could qualify for a grant from the Environment Agency.

The report said: "There have been a number of localised failures of the material, which have been repaired. However, the rate of degradation is increasing such that it is now important that works are carried out as a matter of urgency. If works are not carried out, then the outer wall will become unsafe for the public to use, debris from the failing wall will accumulate within the lake, and the protective effect of the wall on South Parade will be lost."

BBC News Report

wow..i walked round it last week, hope they sort it

Yeah, always seemed pretty strong and safe to me; its lke UE, you never know what is under you're feet hehe!

oooo eck!!!

madness!

Originally Posted by Totopop

madness!

as in baggy trousers?

Originally Posted by renault_longmong

Originally Posted by Totopop

madness!

as in baggy trousers?

culture club era?

I've never even noticed it being unsafe.

Repair's are well worth the money IMO

its well unsafe, i went there the other day, the ion edging all the way round it has gone really rotton and left sharp edge's and even holes.they should of used stainless to start with, but it all comes down to cost i suppose.

The original lake wall was built in 1888/9 and replaced in the 1980's with the current one. First one lasted nearly 100 years this one only 20. Seems they dont build em like they used to.

The builders put a 25 year life span on it , why

lets put it into perspective , if you got a builder in to build you an extension ,and he said its going to degrade substantially after 25 years you would get a better builder . i dont buy into this crap, why did wirral council agree to a sub standard service in the first place , my house was built in 1901 and still srong , there are coastal defences still up around the country that were made over 200 years ago that are still going strong , but the council agreed in 1980 to give a major recreational site a 25 year facelift , wirral council should stump up the cash . and make sure its going to last more than 25 years

Well said

We do not know the circumstances or the forces at work by nature (bear in mind its not just a sea defence, but gets battered by the sea at one side, and has to hold millions of gallons of water at the other side, the pressure on the structure must be immense) to say whether it is shoddy workmanship or not.

Comparing an extension to a house, to a sea defence is completely different; unless a civil engineer can shed some light onto why this would be the case, I would be inclined to believe the job was done to a high standard and is suitable for the task.

Remember, people are supposed to walk on this, and H&S laws nowadays are far stricter than at any time in the past. Use of metrials also began to change by the 80's, with some materials becoming hard to source as well as other becoming banned altogether for new work.

The cash shouldn't be to much of a problem.
A lake licence for a dingy or windsurfer is £135 per year
I dont know how many licence holders there are, guess at 300 probably a lot more
300 x 135 = 40500 per year for the last 23 years = £931,500
plus all the other income the lake generates from all the different sailing based activities.
I realise this a rather simple view,but proves the lake does go some way to paying its way
click me

Originally Posted by Colgo

The cash shouldn't be to much of a problem.
A lake licence for a dingy or windsurfer is £135 per year
I dont know how many licence holders there are, guess at 300 probably a lot more
300 x 135 = 40500 per year for the last 23 years = £931,500
plus all the other income the lake generates from all the different sailing based activities.
I realise this a rather simple view,but proves the lake does go some way to paying its way
click me

Id go along with that theory.