Plans to rebuild the pier behind Lots Road Water Pumping Station and to create a new connected riverside walkway have moved a step closer after approval by the Council’s leadership team.

The proposals form part of wider ambitions to reopen this stretch of the River Thames to residents and visitors for the first time in more than a century. The council has released some architect’s impressions as to what the new jetty might look like.

Members agreed to advance plans to demolish the rotten and broken existing structure and replace it with a new jetty of the same size. The current pier is not safe for public use and restoring it is prohibitively expensive.

When delivered, the new jetty would create a riverside public space alongside the new park behind the Water Pumping Station and connect directly to a new river walkway.

The walkway would extend the Thames Path between Cremorne Gardens and into the new Lots Road Park and onto Chelsea Waterfront, then Chelsea Harbour. The path would then be clear all the way to Wandsworth Bridge.

Both schemes will require planning permission and other statutory approvals before work can begin. RBKC is not releasing estimated costs for the jetty project, but officers have assured The Citizen that the money is in place from a fee paid by Tideway for installing its super sewer access point at this location. That money is “ring-fenced” to be spent on the Lots Road park and associated works.

Several options for the walkway are under consideration, including a route along the eastern riverside and a raised structure over the riverbed. Further design work and public consultation will help determine the final plans.

The linked Lots Road open space would be the first new Council-owned park created since Westfield Park in the early 1980s. The space will feature planting, seating, a drinking fountain and ornamental entrance gates on Lots Road.

Councillor Emma Will, lead member for property, parks and leisure services, has been spear-heading the project. She said: “These plans would reconnect people with the river. Rebuilding the jetty and creating a new riverside walkway will open up a part of the Thames that has been closed off for decades. Linked with the new Lots Road open space, it will create a unique and wonderful place for the whole community to enjoy.”

The Council says the proposals would support health and wellbeing, enhance biodiversity, improve air quality and draw more people into the area.

Further design work will now be carried out, with residents set to be consulted before any construction takes place.

 

Exclusive location photos of the jetty by Yours Truly, Rob McGibbon