Residents seek council acquisition of derelict Jericho Wharf for community facilities

Local residents have initiated a petition calling on a council to acquire and safeguard a neglected site for “desperately needed” new community amenities. Specifically, the Jericho Wharf Trust (JWT) is formally asking Oxford City Council to obtain a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) for the Jericho Wharf. Development proposals for this land adjacent to the Oxford Canal, encompassing a functional boatyard and affordable housing, have involved multiple developers over the last three decades without being realized. The council indicated that it would require “some time” to formulate a response to the appeal. The JWT was established by four local interest groups collaborating to advocate for the site’s revitalization. Dr. Phyllis Starkey, who chairs the trust and is a former Oxford City councillor, stated that a CPO would either “galvanize the developer to get on with it” or “enable the council to… sell it immediately to a developer with whom they have agreed exactly how the site will be developed.” She characterized the proposed facilities as “absolutely desperately needed.” “For the boaters, there is nowhere in Oxford where boats can be taken out of the water and their hulls mended,” she explained. She added, “There have been reports of a significant number of boats becoming in such poor condition that they have literally sunk.” “That’s somebody’s home sinking and disappearing,” she concluded. Bruce Heagerty, secretary of the Jericho Community Boatyard, noted that the nearest repair location is a five-hour journey upstream in Eynsham. He stated, “When the rivers are high like they are now due to flooding, there’s absolutely nowhere in an emergency that we can get our boats out of the water.” “We have a community of 400 canal boats here in the Oxford area and no boatyard within Oxford that you can take them out and service them,” he emphasized. He described the situation as “diabolical, Oxford should be better than that.” David Edwards, a JWT trustee and former head of planning at the city council, commented that the existing community centre on Canal Street is not “fit for modern use.” He elaborated, “You can’t get disabled access properly into it, the rooms are too small.” “The council did an independent assessment that found there needed to be a new facility,” he added. Operations at the site, then a functional boatyard, ceased in 1992 when Orchard Cruisers concluded its activities. At that time, British Waterways (BW) owned the land. The first developer became involved in 2000 when BW selected Bellway Homes instead of local builder Leadbitter, which had been put forward by the Jericho Community Association (JCA). Bellway Homes’ planning application, which did not incorporate a community centre, was subsequently rejected by the city council. A police eviction of squatters from the site in 2006 garnered national press attention and drew criticism from author Philip Pullman, who participated in efforts to preserve the boatyard. Spring Residential, the second developer, acquired the site from BW for £4m and included space for a new community centre in its planning submission. Nevertheless, its application was also denied due to the absence of a new boatyard, its failure to provide 50% affordable housing, and the perceived poor design of the proposed buildings. Spring Residential entered administration in 2009, with its liabilities including a £4m loan from HSBC specifically for the boatyard site. In 2013, Oxford City Council developed a strategic plan for the area, stipulating that any developer would be required to include a public square, a bridge, and allocate land for both a community centre and a boatyard. Subsequently, the Hong Kong-based Cheer Team Corporation, in collaboration with the property company Strategic Iconic Assets Heritage Acquisition Fund (SIAHAF), which is managed in the UK by entrepreneur Johnny Sandelson, submitted proposals for the site. Their plans, featuring a “Venetian-style piazza,” received approval in 2015; however, SIAHAF began discussions for revised plans with a different architect in 2017. By 2019, SIAHAF had partnered with the local firm Cornerstone Land, and over the subsequent years, they modified the plans, removing both the bridge leading to the piazza and the provision for affordable housing. Although the city council rejected this updated application in 2022, the planning inspectorate approved it following an appeal by Cornerstone Land. Since that time, no construction work on the development has commenced. Cornerstone Land’s 2022 proposals diverged from the community’s expectations. In a report, the company cited “financial viability” concerning the affordable homes and the potential for a bridge to exacerbate flooding risks at the site as reasons for their plans. The JWT reported that its last communication with Cornerstone Land occurred in August. The trust presented the developer with a council-approved financial package, hoping to advance the development, but has not received any response from the company since. The BBC sought an update from Cornerstone Land but did not receive a reply. Ed Turner, the city council’s cabinet member for finance and asset management, stated that they would require “some time” to “properly” review and respond to the appeal. He added, “As part of this we will look to meet with representatives from the trust to discuss the matter.” “I would like to thank the JWT for their continued involvement and effort in trying to bring this site forward,” he concluded. Mr. Edwards of the JWT expressed his belief that “a real way forward” could be achieved if the council took the lead. He estimated, “It’ll take probably 12 to 18 months to do the CPO but then a developer could come straight in and start building.” “Let’s bring 30 years of dereliction to an end,” he urged.