An Unusual Proposal
The marina proposed by the Borough Council of Kings Lynn and West Norfolk is an unusual one. What is suggested is a new yacht harbour accessed by lock gates. Just how many marinas are there like this, and where are they located? And why are marinas like this so unusual? Here's a list* of East Coast marinas**:
| Marina | type | entrance |
|---|---|---|
| Ramsgate | existing harbour | no lock |
| Faversham | in river | |
| Conyer | widened creek | no lock |
| Gillingham | existing dock | locked |
| Royal Albert Dock | existing dock | locked |
| Limehouse Basin | existing dock | locked |
| St Katharine's Dock | existing dock | locked |
| Rochester | in river | |
| Cuxton | in river | |
| Benfleet | in river | |
| Gt Wakering | in river | |
| Burnham on Crouch | new yacht harbour | no locks |
| Creeksea | in river | |
| Althorne | in river | |
| Maylandsea | in river | |
| Heybridge Basin | existing dock | locked |
| Maldon | in river | |
| Tollesbury | widened creek | no lock |
| Brightlingsea | in river | |
| Titchmarsh | new yacht harbour | no locks |
| Walton on the Naze | existing dock(??) | Cill |
| Royal Harwich YC | in river | |
| Shotley Point | new yacht harbour | locked |
| Levington | new yacht harbour | no locks |
| Woolverstone | in river | |
| Fox's Marina | widened river? | no locks |
| Ipswich Docks | existing dock | locked, but appears the gates aren't in use |
| Woodbridge Tidemill | existing basin | cill |
| Southwold | in river | |
| Lowestoft | existing harbour | no lock |
| Wells next the Sea | in creek | |
| Wisbech | in river | |
| Fosdyke | in river | |
| Grimsby | existing dock | locked |
| Hull | existing dock | locked |
| Scarborough | existing harbour | no lock |
| Whitby | in river | |
| Hartlepool | existing dock | locked |
| Sunderland | existing harbour | no lock |
| Newcastle, Royal Quay | existing dock | locked |
| Newcastle, Willington Quay | existing dock | no lock |
| Blyth | existing harbour | no lock |
Just four (highlit) (out of 42) are purpose built as yacht harbours: all in the very best yachting locations, where a marina is sure to fill up and can charge top dollar. Of these four just one, Shotley Point, has lock gates at the entrance. The location, right opposite the entrance to Harwich harbour, must be the choicest on the East Coast and this is undoubtedly what decided the developer to build here. Though the building cost must have been high, the constant and easy access to the sea through the best all-weather harbour north of Dover and the tremendous cruising opportunities assured success. There couldn't be a starker contrast with Kings Lynn: isolated, difficult of access and obscure (in yachting terms) as it is. These two sites are so diametrically different in every way that to adopt Shotley's model in Lynn is to invite, maybe even guarantee, failure.
*List: compiled from Google Maps: These are all the marinas visible between Dover and the Scottish border. The names are the names of the nearest place unless the actual name is known to the author.
**Marina: anywhere with yacht moorings on pontoons.