I was wondering if I had missed some local news or announcements regarding the pier and its buildings at Dunoon.

Not surprisingly, a century of salt water means this is showing its age, and is under weight restrictions, which will be further reduced in time and limit the traffic it can carry. If cash was plentiful, then throwing money at restoration would restore it, but politics, ferries and the like mean this is not the simple exercise it might be, so things are far from simple.

That said, although I haven't noticed anything in recent times, I spotted a conversation today, discussing the demolition of Dunoon's pier and buildings as if the work was now going ahead.

Any one have an official news source or info relating to the pier?

4 plans were drawn up for the Dunoon Waterfront Redevelopment and displayed in an empty shop for a week.  Planning Officers were present to elaborate on the plans which were also in the local paper. Not many people visited the display but votes were recorded for the most favoured plan.  With a total of 100 votes plan 4 has gone foreward.  This involves demolishing the pier and rebuilding in concrete to a different layout and the demolition or dismantalling of the pier buildings so that they or replicas can be built on different sites.

There is a fatal flaw in plan 4 which has, as I understand it, been modified.  The entrance to the marina was to be shared by the ferries to the ro-ro ramp.  Modern ferries use their thrusters to stay put at the ramp and this would have meant the thruster wash passing across the boats in the marina.  I understand that a separate entrance is to be constructed on the north end.


Why the high level of apathy in the area?  There are 5 of these major redevelopments in the pipeline and only the cash for 4 and given Dunoon's history of not attracting big projects nobody really thinks it will happen.   The other snag is that none of the plans included facilities for berthing the Calmac streakers and since the company has indicated that it has no plans to replace them with ro-ro boats this would mean the end of the town centre to town centre car service.  

I see, or rather I don't, given the lack of publicity.

While I may not be local, I do consider myself to keep an eye open for anything generally related, certainly more so that anyone that doesn't live there, and most of this is news to me. I'd have though this would have made the online Dunoon Observer with a bit more notice, but then again, regular readers (ie folk that use the GB) often comment on how the selected four articles are not always in touch with what matters, and the frequency of update can be intermittent, and miss relevant items.

It all seems to fall in line with comments I made elsewhere, and that date back a couple of years, to the effect that planning at Dunoon seems to carried out without any sort of integration, or dare I say, any "planning". The news always seems to be of things apparently being done, and then followed by much wailing and moaning and beating of chests by those who appear never to have been considered, but are ultimately affected in some way.

Looks like another issue not to hold one's breath while waiting for developments

I would not reccomend holding your breath!

Over the years we have been presented with the prospect of:-

The longest dry ski slope in Europe

At least 2 high speed ferry services

A re-introduction of the hovercraft service

and many more things I have now forgotten.

Argyll & Bute is a strange council and it seems I am not the only one to think so.  Somewhere on the web is a lengthy report commisioned by the Scottish Office, as it was then, into the question of windfarms.  Would it be better to have one or 2 super wind farms or many small ones.  It covered the whole of Scotland except Argyll & Bute which was explained as "special conditions apply".

There is also a UK Government report into selecting sites to store reactors from nuclear subs.  One site they looked at was in A&B.  It was rejected because of a lack of flat land for future development and "The Council is Argyll & Bute".   None of the rest of the 200 odd site reports mentioned a council.

The present wooden pier is a write off as it is constructed of greenheart, i.e. the core of huge teak trees.  Even if it could be sourced nowadays each pile would cost £20,000 according to a local councillor.

Don't know why Argyll & Bute should be special, I can think of other areas that are similar with regard to layout and windfarms, which could make them similarly special.

Then there's the size, and the fact that it already hosts Faslane and Coulport.

I'm sure a search on the main site will throw up a link to the ISOLUS report, which was the nuclear sub storage study, and has details and rankings of each site, together with reasons for and against

It will, I have read it!

I think the council has always been difficult to work with.

Just found a black & white neg of the pier with a steamer heading off, and the signal tower in view.