Coastal Wellbeing Projects:
See below a plan of how all of the Coastal Wellbeing projects sit alongside each other.
Sitting within the Coastal Wellbeing theme is the Access Walpole Project which includes a number of smaller projects to include; improvements to the tidal pool and surrounds, the steps, and reinstatement of the cliff lift.
Project Overview:
Access Walpole will deliver several projects at Walpole Bay to enhance access and connections to the coast, bringing the sea and all its benefits back to the people who live in or visit this area. This will include the reinstatement of the grade II listed Cliff lift.
The lift was originally installed by the Ministry of Health in the 1930s to encourage people to enjoy the benefits of living by the coast. This included swimming in the nearby tidal pool or walking along the shoreline – activities that improved people’s health and wellbeing. This project will make that happen again.
Without access to a working lift, some people are limited to exploring the clifftop. As part of the Town Deal’s Access Walpole project, bringing back the lift will bring the sea and cliff top communities together, achieving access for everyone. The plan is that in addition to the lift, the area in the immediate vicinity will be developed to include facilities such as a cafe or kiosk.
Alongside the lift, Access Walpole will likely see refurbishment of the steps between the upper and lower promenade, improvements to the tidal pool and traffic management solutions implemented along the Hodges Gap promenade to create a pedestrian dominant space, which will host a new Wellbeing Pavilion.
Project Outcomes:
Bringing the lift back will:
- Promote improved health and wellbeing for the people living nearby.
- Restore civic pride in the area, sending a strong message that Margate continues to be a regeneration success story, that we care about the town and its heritage.
- Connect the clifftop and the seashore, enabling people to enjoy the full spectrum of their surroundings.
- It will help to open up a route, into Margate and back, along the clifftop for people unable to manage a steep climb.
- Create a new, link up to Northdown Road.
- Deliver a valuable community asset.