www.waterfrontblog.co.uk. This is the new domain name for the blog. Please use that as the current blog (this one) on WordPress will no longer be updated.
Just before we go… There has been a Dutch minesweeper in the Wet Dock for the last few days. According to the Ipswich Star, it has been busy recovering WWII British mines from the North Sea! There will be more photos on the new web site so please keep checking.
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I am moving the blog to be self hosted rather than relying on WordPress. I am not sure how this transition will happen but, in the next couple of days this blog will move to http://www.ipswichwaterfrontblog.co.uk. Please follow us when we go to continue with the restarted Waterfront Blog. I have lots of interesting photos and projects coming.
Have been relying on my phone camera for the last couple of years but I now have a very nice Canon 90D digital SLR and also a vintage (c 1986) Canon EOS650 film camera. I don’t have than nice balcony on the front of Capstan House but, with Spring on its way, I am getting out and about a bit on my wheelchair so I can hopefully find something to write most weeks at least.
I am currently producing a little A5 sized photo magazine of my recent trip down the Waterfront and up St. Peter’s Street into what they call “The Saints”. Once that is ready, I will give the details of it. I expect it to be available for about £2.99 including postage.
There is lots of fuss going on about fire prevention in our complex of apartment blocks with work going to be carried out to remove the ‘dodgy’ cladding and replace it with something that won’t go up in flames. This means that all our blocks are going to be wrapped in some sort of plastic and have all the balconies removed so that the work can be carried out. As a result, the residents are in the process of forming a group to get together and liaise with the managing agents. It is all being reported on a new web site at Orwell Quay Owners and Residents. All the images on that site were taken by me so I am fully at liberty to place them here as well.
Well, that is all for now. Lots to come so keep watching.
David
So the pile gets bigger. In fact, they have filled the whole quay now. I stopped one of the fork lifts as he was dashing back and forth. On asking him why, his comment was “No idea. They tell me to move the wood, so I do it”. He agreed that they hadn’t done this for a long time but didn’t know why it was being done now.
A few days later, I was parking my car in Patteson Road and saw that there was a notice attached to a lamp post. From where I stood, I could see that it wasn’t the usual “closing the road” notice so went and had a read. Very interesting, as I am sure that you will agree.
There has been talk for a long time about Anglo-Norden moving into the port and flats being built but nothing ever happened. As I was told, there was difficulty over unloading Suntis. Once in the port, as I understand it, they would have to use port labour rather than their own. Well, reading this, it would seem that things are now moving on. Goodness knows how long the process will take – perhaps the local councillor can tell us – but it would make the Waterfront a lot more appealing., especially if the council insist on the dockside being upgraded, as they did with our block. If you remember, Persimmon had to arrange for a complete rebuild of the dock edge a few years ago (see my blog posts!). We will watch this one with interest.
We know that they own the area of waterfront just by the Aurora. They keep it fenced off. They have used it twice, to our knowledge, to unload Suntis – the last time a few weeks ago. However, they have had fork lifts darting backwards and forwards this afternoon building a large pile of their wood packets in that area.
They didn’t block the pathway off so they were operating alongside the joggers, cyclists and pedestrians using it during the afternoon.
If anyone knows what is happening, perhaps they could post a comment on the blog.
Our local councillor, Liz Harsant does a great job for the Ward (or area for our overseas visitors). She has a Facebook page where you can keep up with council activities:
Liz Harsant Councillor for Holywells Ward
Today, she posted an item about my favourite Pharmacy – Aqua on Duke Street. Liz attended the launch of “Robbie the Robot” AKA a self service machine for dispensing prescriptions.
It is said that you know that you are over the hill when you are on first name terms with your pharmacist – well Michelle, the owner, and I have been great friends ever since Valerie and I moved to the Waterfront over 6 years ago – and we found out that we were born about 1/2 a mile away from each other (in different time frames) down in Streatham, South London. We even went to the same primary and junior school – Eardley Road!
This means that I have been using the new machine on the rare occasions when my prescription collection hasn’t been supplied in a sack! Anyway, this is the new machine.
Touch the screen to get going. All you have to do is to enter the supplied PIN number and down it comes. BTW, it is NOT an ATM so don’t expect to get cash out as I have been led to believe has happened!
I was going to include some shots and videos of the fireworks last night but there were too far away on the other side of the Island so I have had to forego that.
Instead, I had a look outside for the first morning of 2019. The whole Wet Dock was lit by the rays of the sun, even though the clouds hung over the scene.
I would like to wish all my readers a happy and prosperous new year.
You can do me one favour. Please tell everyone you know that we exist.
Ipswich Waterfront Blog – https://iwblog.org
As one of our readers said recently “As Waterfront residents (Neptune Square) we have learned a lot from what goes on under our noses from your blog. Thanks for the effort you make.” Enough said!
It hasn’t been a full year for the blog but this is mostly due to my rotten legs. Anyway, 2019 will be a very good year and I will get more to say about the Waterfront. As it is, have a great Christmas and a very happy new year.
I took two photos of the tree outside the University. One in the daylight – ho humm.
This didn’t look too great so we went around after dark.
That’s better.
There are some historic names for the wharfs along the Ipswich waterfront as can be seen in this image:
What we now call Orwell Quay is actually three wharfs. Anglo-Norden usually unloads Suntis on Eagle Wharf but, as I understand it, they have the right to unload at Gasworks Quay as well. They don’t often do this as it is more complicated for them. I was told that they have to use Gasworks Quay occasionally to retain the right. I am not sure of the correctness of this but I have been told the story on a few occasions. We have been living on the Waterfront for six and a half years now and, in that time, they have only used this quay once.
On Saturday we noticed that the were putting out their large blocking units amongst the cars parked along under the balconies of Capstan House. We were worried that they were going to trying stop the parking there, as they have done on Eagle Wharf for some time. I worked out what was happening when Suntis came in and moored further down outside the Aurora.
On Sunday, a notice appeared on each car warning that the vehicle should be moved as they would be “offloading a ship between 2nd and 4th December. Parking here will cause an obstruction. Please be advised that we will remove any vehicle that is causing an obstruction.”. By Monday morning there were only two cars left there and they seemed to have been ignored (see my note at the end of this).
Anyway, Monday dawned and off they went with one crane and fork lift trucks busily running back and forth. They had barricaded the whole of the waterfront so that pedestrians couldn’t get in the way.
This one was actually running backwards with its load. I had a chat with one of their staff, whose job, it seemed, was to direct pedestrians through the maze and he pretty much confirmed what I thought. Anyway, here is a shot of the activity taken on the Waterfront itself.
This is a view that we don’t normally get as the stern of Suntis is normally way down Helena Road and I can’t walk that far, unless I have my chair. I will add that the bollard with the cone seems to be stuck and hasn’t been dropped down for months. This has caused some issues for the fork lift trucks when manoeuvring with piles of wood (and for the funfair rides at the end of the Maritime weekend).
It was raining during the day so a shot from our window finishes off.
Just a final note to say that I was tempted to leave my car there with my blue badge showing. It is illegal to move or disable a parked car when showing a blue badge, no matter where it is parked – for obvious reasons. I would have loved it if they had towed my car away!
No, it isn’t quite Christmas yet!
On my way back from Tesco the other morning, I went the long way around, down past The Cult and along the waterfront. There were three Seacat offshore support catamarans berthed alongside the lightship.
The three boats were:
Finally, a shot of the stern of Vigilant
Ipswich Waterfront Blog 