Fears that beach ban is on the cards
Nudists and lovers of Eastney beach are furious at being barred from a meeting they fear could give the go-ahead to a project which spoil their chances of enjoying the seafront.
On Tuesday, Portsmouth City Council's executive committee will consider a proposal by MoD agency Qinetiq to purchase a stretch of public land to create an access route to the Eastney site.
Council officers have recommended approval for the purchase of a 10-metre-wide strip between Fort Cumberland Road and Lumsden Road.
City chiefs gave permission in 2005 for 131 new flats to be built behind Eastney beach, valued at between 200,000 and 500,000. The only remaining obstacle is to buy the land for access.
The decision will be taken behind closed doors because the debate is likely to include discussions of commercially-sensitive information.
Qinetiq bosses own the stretch of beach and, although they have never formally said they will kick the nudists off, naturist Mike Halsby, 50, fears the worst.
'The public and press are not allowed to hear the arguments on Tuesday,' he said. 'I am very concerned. Eastney Naturists have been using the beach since the 1940s. We feel the developer wants to get rid of us because we will be in view of the new flats.'
Eastney Lib Dem councillor Terry Hall said: 'I would urge people to go along to the meeting to ask why they cannot hear the arguments. There are restrictions on discussing the financial details but that could be avoided in a meeting to work out the principles of any purchase.
'At the beginning Qinetiq seemed to imply that the existing users could stay there but since they have made it clear that this is not the case,' she said. 'I think it's wrong. We have never had any complaints about the naturists.'
A Qinetiq spokeswoman said: 'Legally the beach is our private land, but we have not made a firm policy decision about beach access.'
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Portsmouth
Thursday 24 May 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 15 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 8 mph
Wind direction: South east
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 13 C to 25 C
Wind Speed: 24 mph
Wind direction: East
