Cambridge University Boat Club’s plan for boathouse on River Great Ouse is in the wrong place

CAMBRIDGE University Boat Club’s plans for a new building in Ely is not only the wrong building it is also in the wrong place.

It is the wrong place because the site is inside a county wildlife site and next to Roswell Pits and Meadows, a site of special scientific interest. Such sites have national recognition and protect and recognize valuable landscapes, flora and fauna.

The planned boathouse would sit in the middle of an important wildlife corridor used by bitterns, otters and water voles.

It is the wrong place because the site is on agricultural land inside the river bank and on the flood plain where there are no other buildings. The land is not in the Local Development Framework and building here would set a dangerous precedent.

Building on this site will have a detrimental effect on views out from Ely and back to the Ship of the Fens. This whole area is important to walkers, fishermen and nature lovers and forms part of a valuable green lung around Ely.

It is not a simple replacement building for the current boathouse but in their own words, a “high performance training centre”. The buildings will be open from early morning every day and the boatman may be required to work “throughout the night”.

ELIZABETH HUNTER

Chairman

Elywildspace

Via e-mail