19 July 2018
A local company has been selected to demolish the former cable car station at Fort Regent. Firms were invited to tender for the work via the Channel Islands Procurement Portal, and, after a rigorous tender process, the contract has been awarded to the demolition and plant hire company, D B Cummins Ltd.
The Infrastructure Minister, Deputy Kevin Lewis, said: “I am glad that one of my first Ministerial Decisions will contribute towards the removal of this increasingly dangerous structure. The awarding of the contract to a local company, after several years of preparatory work, is a good example of the pooling of resources within the new Growth Housing and Environment department. This is the start of the work that I hope will secure a future for Fort Regent.”
The full cost of the work, including other expenses as well as the actual demolition, is estimated at £866,000.
The Assistant Minister for Economic Development, Tourism Sport and Culture, Senator Steve Pallett, said: “I am pleased to have finally resolved the issue of the cable car station. This decision is the culmination of several years of hard work and will remove a building that is no longer needed and has become unsafe. I hope we can now move forward to consider the future of the wider site.”
The same Ministerial Decision also approves the demolition of the former swimming pool building. Tenders are being invited for this work.
Fort Regent was originally built as a military fortress and was completed in 1814.
The States of Jersey acquired the Fort from the British Government on the 1st March 1958.
In 1967 the ‘Fort Regent Development Committee’ took the first steps in converting Fort Regent into a recreation centre for both islanders and visitors. The cable cars were opened on 1st June 1970 to provide a direct route to the Fort from Snow Hill. The last cable car ran in 1988.
Since its closure, the disused Cable Car Station has stood empty and is becoming dilapidated. There have also been reported break-ins, vandalism and unauthorised access.
While every effort has been made to keep these buildings stable and secure, the dilapidation continues to worsen and the potential risk of injury to trespassers remains.
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