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First to give good practice guide for houseboats
Ref : 06/115 : Date : 05-12-2006
Adur
Council has produced the first comprehensive good practice guide for houseboats.
Shoreham’s houseboats provide a unique type of housing in the town and are well known in the area.
This good practice guide is intended to help houseboat owners, ensure the environment of this part of the river is protected and improved and keep the character of the houseboats. The guide will clarify planning and environmental aspects and was created because of the lack of national and local guidance about houseboats.
This good practice guide provides useful information about the environment, nature conservation and utilities such as sewage connection and car parking.
Houseboat owners will now have clear guidelines as to what requires permission and what doesn’t.
Highlighted in the guide is the issue of sewage connection. Only one of the houseboats is connected to the mains sewer, the guidance says that it would clearly be desirable to have all the houseboats connected. Southern Water and the Environment Agency are looking at whether a practical solution can be found.
The council is addressing the issue of car parking and plans to clean up the area around the Beach Green car park and the service road (adjacent to the houseboats).
Some houseboat owners use the service road for parking unofficially. The council now plans to include this and other land in the vicinity as part of the car park.
There is also evidence of some encroachment on to council land and this is being addressed.
Consultation on the draft guide will start in the New Year and when complete will become part of the Adur Development Plan.
Council Leader, Neil Parkin said: “The contents of this document will help us to work with houseboat owners and other organisation to avoid confusion in the future over what is acceptable and what is not.”
See : Good practice guide for houseboats
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