The application has received minimal publicity from the Council so far. A single planning notice has been posted almost 100 yards away on Island Wall and there are no notices posted whatsoever on the beach at the proposed site. WBC is awaiting confirmation from CCC whether any public notice has been released in the press. A limited number of local households received notification letters in the new year. For this reason it has fallen to WBC to raise the public's awareness of the application and associated issues at this time.

The previous smaller 2002 application prompted 191 letters of representation from the public, of which only 19 were in support.

The Open Spaces Society oppose this application. To quote from their letter sent to CCC on 4 December 2002:

'The Open Spaces Society is Britain's oldest national conservation body. A registered charity, we campaign to create and conserve common land, village greens, open spaces and rights of public access, in town and country, in England and Wales.

The society is opposed to the application to build a café on West Beach.

We believe that if granted this will be the start of a presumption towards commercial development of the beach which will deprive the public of the use of the area.

We believe that such a development would be contrary to the areas designation as a conservation area and contrary to the protection of it as a site of special scientific interest.

The development would detract from the public's enjoyment of walking on the long distance section shore way footpath.

We would also draw your attention to the revised PPG 17 (July 2002) which requires assessments to be made where there will be any loss of open space and also requires consultation prior to any such development.'

The articles below appeared in the press in relation to the original 2002 application. The intention of the developer at the time was to extend development significantly beyond the proposed cafe application. The current application does not include beach huts at this time, but is 50% larger than the 2002 proposal.

Whitstable Times, 14 November 2002



Whitstable Gazette, 14 November 2002

You will have seen or heard the local papers, TV or Radio reporting the WOFC’s message to their share-holders that they are looking for a buyer for part of the beach, and their admission that this has been prompted by the opposition we have all expressed towards their development plans. Mr Green admits he would like to replace ALL the beach huts that were there before the last big storm [1979]. Meanwhile the WOFC’s plans to build the café remain in place. Letters to the Council opposing these are even more important now.

Mandy Bruce who ran the Red Spider in the 1970s is worried about the new plans. She is appalled that the 'new' Red Spider would dominate the beach.
Whitstable Times, 24 October 2002

Picture supplied by Mandy Bruce showing the Red Spider café as viewed from Wave Crest.