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Final surf reef bill delayed as it must prove worth first

8:00am Saturday 29th August 2009 in


BOSCOMBE’S soon-to-be-completed surf reef will be monitored for one year before the final payment is made to contractor ASR.

When the reef is finished next month, experts from Plymouth University will check it performs in the way it should before the final £150,000 is paid.

The sum is 10 per cent of the original £1.5million fee to build the reef, although this has since increased to £3.03m.

The university experts will conduct site visits and collect data from on-site cameras to monitor the shape and power of breaking waves.

They will also keep tabs on the number of surfable days and the number of surfers at both the pier and reef areas, compared with previous years.

In preparation for the completion of the reef, Bournemouth Borough Council has produced an easy-to-read leaflet explaining how it will work.

This states that the reef is not for beginners but for competent, confident surfers who are beginning to initiate and execute standard surfing manoeuvres.

It also seeks to dispel the myth that the reef will create waves. “An artificial surf reef does not create waves, it works with the surf already there,” it states.

“The reef will act as a ramp, pushing waves upwards and shaping them into better quality surfing waves.

“This means that, instead of a wave breaking in one go, or ‘closing out,’ the breaking section of the wave will run along the length of the wave – known as ‘peeling.’ “This makes the waves on the reef better for surfing because the breaking section of the waves will run down the reef. Therefore, Boscombe’s reef will see waves peeling down the reef and breaking with more power than on the beach.”

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Comments(39)

Peggy Babcock says...
10:34am Sat 29 Aug 09

From what i have seen of the reef so far (and i ride past daily), it does not seem to be creating any such surf, more of a few choppy waves no different than on a sand bank, especially at low tide. As much as i want it to succeed, i'm not convinced it will.

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cooperman says...
10:42am Sat 29 Aug 09

sounds like a load of 'sales patter' to me - improves the quality of the surf thats already there !! do what ? 3 million quid . a very fast,heavy speedboat would have the same effect with its bow-wave and it would leave two million change after Sunseekers discount.
the logic of commissioning this reef escapes me - there are too many unanswered questions,nothing to gauge it against and if it doesnt work ,there will be a lot of shoulder shrugging as they leave their paid-for undercliff accommodation, climb into the minibus and head for the airport for a well earned trip home and a proper day at a surf beach provided by mother nature ,they must be laughing their socks off

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pete0404 says...
11:14am Sat 29 Aug 09

what they should have done is spent the money getting rid of the druncks, druggies and thieves in boscombe, also the beggers, who wants to use a serf reef when trying to get to it you get acossted by these low lifes.

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Glashen says...
11:23am Sat 29 Aug 09

ASR's reputation depends on the reef meeting its design criteria. £150K may seem an inadequate retainer but the bad publicity will cost them far more. It is good that Plymouth university will do a proper assessment of the reefs performance. This must be make or break for ASR.

I think Bournemouth council's management of the project was poor, however I still believe it was a brave attempt to do something different whilst improving a dilapidated sea front. The Pier area has been immeasurably improved from the neglected state it was in 3 years ago. I'm also happy to see the Barratt's development approaching completion and bringing in new people and money to Boscombe.

Let's hope the reef's completion sees Boscombe on the crest of a wave.

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marmalade166 says...
11:49am Sat 29 Aug 09

pete0404 wrote:
what they should have done is spent the money getting rid of the druncks, druggies and thieves in boscombe, also the beggers, who wants to use a serf reef when trying to get to it you get acossted by these low lifes.
not to mention bad spellers

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pete0404 says...
12:20pm Sat 29 Aug 09

marmalade166 wrote:
pete0404 wrote:
what they should have done is spent the money getting rid of the druncks, druggies and thieves in boscombe, also the beggers, who wants to use a serf reef when trying to get to it you get acossted by these low lifes.
not to mention bad spellers
hay i might not be that good at spelling but at least i dont go and try and scave money from people when there at the cash points, like the beggers do nor do i construct a multi million pound piece of garbage like the reef so .....

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tommytorets says...
1:03pm Sat 29 Aug 09

Total waste of money, most surfers will still go to cornwall to surf, this reef will never reach the standards we get down there, whoever thought this one up needs shooting, perhaps it was the same person who came up with the abomination known as the IMAX

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Paul supporter says...
1:34pm Sat 29 Aug 09

MOST OF YOU LOT ARE PATHETIC!!!

Yeah but its ok to moan that bmouth is rubbish for waves, but when something tries to get done about it you all complain!

GROW UP! As a local who actually surfs, yeah it may not be hawaii, but at least its an option!

.........AND BY THE WAY, TO THOSE OF YOU THAT FAIL TO LISTHEN....it doesnt create waves, thats impossible....it uses what swell there is there and acts as a ramp. no swell no waves!!! thats why if there are choppy little waves its because there is no (natural) swell (waves) in the channel!!

I have seen decent waves break on the reef when it was only the base there! if you want pics.....i have them!!

cheers


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peterdw777 says...
1:40pm Sat 29 Aug 09

In the past week we have had some very windy days that one would normally associate with good surfing waves. Viewing the waves on the reef from the Honeycombe Beach complex, I was disappointed to see that there were no decent waves produced by the thing.

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kin-hell says...
2:06pm Sat 29 Aug 09

The area where the reef is will never attract the public.
I went to go on the pier and fish with my grandchildren but the pier was full of drunks drinking from cider bottles, swearing and shouting and making it impossible for my grandchildren to stay there.
It was in fact dangerous as well as these drunks were casting there line and hooks across the pier and could snag anyone.
There is no disipline on the pier and Bournemouth Corporation were never about.
The area needs full time police to end all this undisiplined area with, druggies, drunks and winos around, but if you mention it to the police the answer from them is "at least we know where they are and they would only move on somewhere else". This country has gone to the dogs!!!! but perhaps that is an insult to the dog.

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Glashen says...
2:13pm Sat 29 Aug 09

The real success or failure of the project may have little to do with the actual quality of the surf. It will generate a lot of publicity, a lot of surfers will come to try it.

The question is can the project reverse the long term decline that Boscombe has experienced, one aspect of this you can now see, is the investment and new building that has already happened in Boscombe.

Will this be sustained, I hope so.

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ferret38 says...
2:13pm Sat 29 Aug 09

Round em up under the pier and just shoot em dead as there just a waste of space time and effort ! that will clear the area up with minimal cost :)

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Chris... says...
2:42pm Sat 29 Aug 09

An A3 piece of paper representing Bournemouth and Poole Bay. Stick a postage stamp on it, which represents the surf reef. Thats about it. If it does not produce surf, why call it a surf reef. Being a bay, unless the winds and tides are coming from a certain direction the bay will not have many waves, and will certainly have reduced by the time they arrive at the blow up canvas duvet under water. Someone mentioned that Cornwall will retain its status as the surf area, of course it will. The reason why Bournemouth has this reef is because Newquay, Cornwall turned it down as a waste of space. All this has done is caused a lot of controversy in Bournemouth, it has supposedly given status to Cllr Dunlop and Roger Brown form the Leisure Dept, but the cost will far out way the income, because there will be no income. In Cornwall surfers can arrive at the beach in their vehicles, bikes, off load their gear, sometimes even accessing the beach with the same. Where in Boscombe are they going to park, leave their gear to be nicked by the plethora of drunks, and drug addicts.

The whole issue is a flop from start to finish. £3.03m, what a laugh, and the rest, directly and indirectly. If it was not for the reef, the rest would not have been done, raising the costs to over £12m.


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Lord Spring says...
4:32pm Sat 29 Aug 09

How much is Plymouth University charging to conduct their survey. More outgoings I presume, if it is in excess of the rentention amount might as well pay up now and make a saving

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CB1985 says...
7:41pm Sat 29 Aug 09

Been done to boscombe pier beach the last couple of weekends. Amusing to see kids actually walking on the reef when the tide went out (does that do it any good?). As for the mention of swell, would it have been better built by Southbourne, where the 'swell' is better (from what I heard from surfers; I have no idea what 'swell' is)?

I understand the concern, but the likelihood is that the people criticising the reef probably wouldn't use it, even if the reef ends up being fantastic.

My concern is how not paying the final 150k (of 3m), if the reef is not up to expectation, is going to make a difference. Surely not paying the final 1.5m would be a better circumstance for poor quality.

A lot of people here are straying off topic as to the local characters (drunks) in Boscombe. It's not just a council problem, but a police, resident, and visitor problem. It's a problem that should be discussed elsewhere as it really isn't related to the reef.


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matthewsad says...
8:38pm Sat 29 Aug 09

Enough money has been spent on this mess that Macloughlin, Beesley, Donnellan & Martin have created. It's about time that they go their act together!!!!!!!!!!!!
!

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dickyboy says...
9:04pm Sat 29 Aug 09

Still waiting for a decent wave at Opunake, New Zealand. My Brother lives there & has promised to e mail me when a surfable wave arrives. Bournemouth Council has been royally shafted.
The £3.03 million should have been spent on better things like Julias House or Cancer research. Hang your heads in shame Bournemouth Council.

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reverendrev says...
9:39pm Sat 29 Aug 09

one hundred and fifty grand is a splash in the ocean from the millions already spent/passed round. Is this some naff attempt at PR from the money wasters?

Anyone else think these parasites should just take the hit from their failed and idiotic pension plans?

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Chris... says...
10:35pm Sat 29 Aug 09

dickyboy wrote:
Still waiting for a decent wave at Opunake, New Zealand. My Brother lives there & has promised to e mail me when a surfable wave arrives. Bournemouth Council has been royally shafted.
The £3.03 million should have been spent on better things like Julias House or Cancer research. Hang your heads in shame Bournemouth Council.
Very interesting to read. I too would like to see the surfable waves.....should I hold my breath.....haha.....


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wonderway says...
10:48pm Sat 29 Aug 09

hey Mr Brown total cost was 3.01million in February how come everyone is Quoting 3.03 will someone from that scrutiny panel please check that they have not added a few more thousand pounds to the price again

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tommytorets says...
12:02am Sun 30 Aug 09

If you take a trip to most places on the north coast of cornwall you will find miles and miles of sandy beaches, so that you do not have to carry your boards and other equipment most can very conviently park on or very near the beach, for 12 months of the year most surfers are assured of heavy swells and high waves ideal for surfing, the whole coastline is swamped with cafes and restuarants that stay open quite late in the evening, also the coastline is natural not man made,now lets look at boscombe, dull dreary and full of drunks and druggies, surfers cant park near the beach unless they take out a second mortgage, this surf reef is made up of sand bags and if you look at it from the cliffs you can hardly notice it because its so small, are we going to see surfers waiting in lines for their turn to surf, its a man made waste of money which will generate no return whatsoever, i cant ever imagine the day when people will be ranting about the surfing at boscombe beach, most of the shops restaurants and toilets close down around 6 pm, even in the summer months,
This whole 3 million pound sandcastle is a waste of money which this council can ill afford, its an imax under water, another attempt by the powers that be to try and make boscombe something that its not,
Look over the cliffs in a couple of years and the whole thing will be washed away.
Who ever thought up this complete disaster should be hung drawn and quatered

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deanmatthews1966 says...
4:07am Sun 30 Aug 09

I drive a taxi in Coolangatta, next to Snapper Rocks which is regarded as one of the better surf breaks going, we have ex world surfing champions living here and the guy who will probably win this years tour, there are also hundreds of hard core surfers who live in the area and surf all round the world. I have spoken with lots of surfers and asked them about the artificial surf breaks and they all say they make no noticable difference, when the swells up the surfs up regardless. I lived in Boscombe until I was 23 and used to hang out around Boscombe Pier a lot from the age of 14 during that time you could count on one hand the number of times a decent swell would come in and a good wave would be created, it only happens when there is or has been a storm. I think this whole surf reef saga will turn out to be a dud and a waste of money, but oh how I hope for Boscombes sake I am wrong.

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RivermeadMike says...
7:21am Sun 30 Aug 09

A lot of money spent for the enjoyment a relatively few people!

It would have been better spent on demolishing the IMAX and restoring the wonderful view from Bath Hill of Poole Bay and the Purbecks beyond!

With the waves breaking more powerfully on to the beach it won't be too long before all the sand, pumped in a great expense, will be washed away.

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poolebabe says...
9:29am Sun 30 Aug 09

Most days I go to the beach, I go to Boscome as it's usually less busy than Bournemouth. I have to say I love Boscome beach and what the authorities have done to it. The facilities are fantastic, and the improvements have been superb. I am so pleased the council have invested money in Boscome. It's well needed and deserved. Anything the council can do to attract tourism is good. People have to remember that the surf reef is only part of the work they are doing. The sea front has had a lot of improvements as well. With the air show, I'm confident all these investments are worth the money to extend what Bournemouth has to offer. I do think that the next phase has to be improving the whole area of Boscome, in reducing crime and drug taking. Bocome has the ability to generate a lot of income, but it has to be "cleaned up" first.

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John T says...
10:31am Sun 30 Aug 09

poolebabe
I am glad to see you have, at least, managed to remove one 'b' from Boscombe!

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poolebabe says...
11:48am Sun 30 Aug 09

John T wrote:
poolebabe I am glad to see you have, at least, managed to remove one 'b' from Boscombe!
Well I try my best ;)

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tommytorets says...
12:14pm Sun 30 Aug 09

poolebabe,,,,,,,,,th
e best way to improve Boscombe is to dump a dirty great nuke on it and rebuild

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djd says...
1:09pm Sun 30 Aug 09

Does this mean Plymouth University are going to offer Doctorates in measuring the effectiveness of artificial surf reefs ????????

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Gastines says...
4:26pm Sun 30 Aug 09

If the original contract mentioned a 10% retention, then perhaps the Council should be with-holding £330.000. At least it will go some way to paying the cost of hauling their gear back from India and the cost of the workers accommodation.
Now the flats are empty I hope the furnishings pain for by the Council,will be put to good use,perhaps one of the Night Shelters could use it?
Still waiting for the"ECHO" to complete it's reporting on the scheme by advising the cost of the designers:the ones who put the postcard pictures on the walls of the beach pods,the Extate agents fees and how many have sold.Are any being re-sold yet?

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Bob49 says...
4:55pm Sun 30 Aug 09

I wouldn't hold you breath Gastines. On th night of fireworks fiasco there wa only one 'pod' in use. Walking past midday sunday of the airshow I did not see anyone or any doors open.
I can only wonder how much of a shortfall there will be in the council's budget through the lack of sales or rental income from these idiocies - and if they can't drum up any interest in the summer I doubt there will be any takers after the schools go backs. With flats that aren't selling, beach huts that can't be rented and an unfinished reef that won't make waves surely someone must have made money out of this farce ?

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poolebabe says...
8:12am Mon 31 Aug 09

tommytorets wrote:
poolebabe,,,,,,,,,th e best way to improve Boscombe is to dump a dirty great nuke on it and rebuild
I think that is a little harsh!!!

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ferret38 says...
8:51am Mon 31 Aug 09

poolebabe wrote:
tommytorets wrote:
poolebabe,,,,,,,,,th e best way to improve Boscombe is to dump a dirty great nuke on it and rebuild
I think that is a little harsh!!!
i agree , but we do need to get rid of the druggies , robbers , theives , drunks , beggers to make it a better place close down all the drop in treatment centers and the judges not to be soft with passing sentance !

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Benniestewart says...
10:43am Mon 31 Aug 09

THE BAD PUBLICITY AND PUBLIC PERCEPTION IS NAIVE AND OFTEN UNBASED THERE ARE AS MANY DROP IN CENTRES REHABS JUNKIES AND ALCHOLICS IN BOURNEMOUTH AS BOSCOMBE IN FACT I WOULD HAZARD A GUESS MORE. HAVE A GOOD LOOK AT BOURNEMOUTH TOWN - WALK AROUND IN THE DAY-
YOU WILL SEE AS MANY SO CALLED UNDESIRABLES IN BOURNEMOUTH
AS BOSCOMBE TAKE A WALK ABOUT WESTBOURNE! BOSCOMBE IS A SMALL SUBURB OF OF BOURNEMOUTH WHO KNOWS WHAT THE FUTURE OF THE REEF WILL BE
DO NOT DISASSOCIATE BOSCOMBE FROM BOURNEMOUTH -BOSCOMBE IS IN THE BOROUGH OF BOURNEMOUTH THE FOOTFALL OF BOSCOMBE IS HEALTHY AND IN THESE TIMES OF RECESSION HOLDING ITS OWN WITH OTHER SAME SIZE SHOPPING SUBURBS - ITS QUITE EASY TO STOP THE ONGOING PROBLEMS OF CENTRAL BOSCOMBE STOP BUILDING FLATS THAT PROVIDE ACCOMMODATION FOR SO MANY SINGLE PEOPLE AFTER COMPLETING REHAB PRORGAMMES IN THIS TOWN AND WHO STAY ON BECAUSE OFTHE WEALTH OF AVAILABLE ACCOMMODATION - MAYBE MANY PEOPLES WORST NIGHTMARES WILL COME TRUE AND MANY OF THESE PEOPLE WILL SPEND THEIR DAYS DOWN ON BOSCOMBE SEAFRONT!!


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brando121 says...
11:27am Wed 2 Sep 09

well this is what i have found so far,
http://www.youtube.c
om/watch?v=6tu3AtAR6
SA&eurl=http%3A%2F%2
Fwww.bournemouth.co.
uk%2Fsite%2Fthings-t
o-do%2Fboscombe-surf
-reef%2Fconstruction
&feature=player_embe
dded
well i can see a difference, with an offshore wind those waves would of looked good and dont forget we are only in early September, dont judge it for at least another 2 months, im not saying its gonna be great and i have been thinking it was one big scam, but having seen this footage im willing to give it more time.

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brando121 says...
11:27am Wed 2 Sep 09

well this is what i have found so far,
http://www.youtube.c
om/watch?v=6tu3AtAR6
SA&eurl=http%3A%2F%2
Fwww.bournemouth.co.
uk%2Fsite%2Fthings-t
o-do%2Fboscombe-surf
-reef%2Fconstruction
&feature=player_embe
dded
well i can see a difference, with an offshore wind those waves would of looked good and dont forget we are only in early September, dont judge it for at least another 2 months, im not saying its gonna be great and i have been thinking it was one big scam, but having seen this footage im willing to give it more time.

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BIGTONE says...
7:12am Thu 3 Sep 09

150 Grand retainer out of over £3 million?
The contractor can afford to walk away laughing all the way to the bank irrelevant if the reef works or not.If it does work it is a bonus and they will get another 150 Grand.Who did the maths for this at the Council? Haaaaaaaa.

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BIGTONE says...
7:47am Thu 3 Sep 09

As a footnote..........
The council should rip down Boscombe pier and make it a nice pleasant beach like all the others in the borough and concentrate on Bournemouth as being the primary beach.The problem the council have with Bournemouth/Boscombe is they are forever trying to make them compete with each other and in the meantime spending millions on it.Why do Bournemouth need 2 piers anyway?

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hmmmmph says...
9:12pm Thu 3 Sep 09

for goodness sake - this subject is like a broken old record! this is not news - the fact that a final payment would be withheld has been known from the beginning. This is just the echo stirring things up again. Bournemouth Borough Council - damned if you do, and damned if you don't...............

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time nor Tide says...
3:32am Wed 16 Sep 09

it is well known that once in a while it may be a rideable breaking wave in the right circumstances. That means swell,wind,tide and of course time of day all coincide. So it will either be on chance reassuring, or on further chance a dissapointment. Some hours, days, months and years will be probably be vacillating between the two. Now that has always been the case and not much has changed from that. Those that expected too much will be dissapointed and those that expect nothing at all may also be dissapointed or suprised. So how many of the community feel let down and dissapointed will determine its sucess rating. I fear there will be many dissapointed yay and nayers alike. The risk assessment of the dissapointment rating may have been flawed or may have many more just not caring for whatever result. so who cares?

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