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Vandals target new marina

by Eve Dugdale
13/ 8/2008

A MULTI-MILLION pound ‘major tourism pull’ for Tameside has been targeted by vandals before it’s even been completed.

Fences have been ripped out and dumped in the water and foam tipped on the surface of the impressive waterway.

But it’s not the first time the site has been targeted.

"Sometimes there’s up to 80 or 100 people swimming in it, on rafts and all sorts. They’ve set fire to it, it’s like a bombsite," said a nearby resident who refused to be named for fear of reprisals. At the weekend they’re swimming there, coming down in their trunks with their towels."

A swimming pool and several businesses were forced to close to make way for the marina, which has been created off the Ashton canal and hailed as a real coup for the town.

The project will include 92 ‘executive homes’, apartments, office, retail units and space for a hotel and gym.

Resident Rob Sheldon sent an email to the Advertiser asking what had happened to the marina.

He said: "Where are the councillors who were happily posing for photos not long ago? By day ‘Sapphire Point’ is like a ghost town with somebody appearing now and then, but in the evening the place comes alive. Kids swarm all over the site with security non existent and don’t even mention phoning the police.   We now have a new swimming pool where the baths were with youths swimming in the marina at any given time."

A council spokesman said: "We are aware of some problems with vandalism around Droylsden Marina and we are taking steps to tackle the problem. There are signs up warning of the dangers of playing in the canal and around the marina and the Tameside Patrollers make regular patrols of the area. During the school summer holidays waterways can be tempting for children and young people looking for something to do and I would ask that parents emphasise the dangers of playing in and around water."