Ready for Redevelopment

Virtually all the buildings in the foreground are scheduled for demolition soon,

when a large "Boulevard" is driven through them to link 

the major waterfront, regeneration project in Millbay Docks,to the City Centre.

Epiphany

In the Church Calendar, yesterday marked the arrival

 of the three Wise Men at the stable.

I wonder what would have happened, if in 2019 a star had guided three men from the East to a shipping container in 

Millbay Docks, here in PlymouthPlymouth, 

and found a refugee family.

Waiting for a break in the bad weather.

This is the Brittany Ferries vessel MV Cap Finisterre safe at her berth in Millbay Docks, Plymouth.

 

The recent, seemingly endless procession of storms rolling in from the Atlantic, has caused a higher than normal number of cancellations and late arrivals of services on their network of routes, 

which link many ports in Britain, Ireland, France and Spain.

It is not the beauty of the building you should look at;

it is the construction of the foundation 

that will stand the test of time.

                                                                                     David Alan Coe

 

The warehouses and ship repair workshops have been cleared,

and the footings are being created for the next batch of Waterfront apartments in Millbay Dock.

The man who likes waving at passing ships.

One bonus of glass walled buildings is that they create a kaleidoscopic reflection

 of everything that passes by.

Plymouth has just announced plans for a new Cruise Ship Terminal, to be built in Millbay Dock.

I doubt that the surrounding buildings will create such beautiful reflections as these in Amsterdam.

Red and Gold

Autumn arrives at The Plymouth School of Creative Arts.

CLICK to find out more about this exciting new educational initiative 

The recently created PSCA is in the heart of the Millbay district of Plymouth's

Waterfront Redevelopment Area, where the former Millbay Docks 

are being transformed into a Waterfront Village

From thriving port .....

.... through derelict "brownfield" site, to Quadrant Quay. 

This is the latest instalment in what has now been christened 

Plymouth's Ocean Quarter.

The first owners  have begun to move into this first phase of the of the development 

 There is a mixture of appartments and "Town Houses", in varying shapes and sizes.

The picture below shows the dock as it was.

The area shaded in red is the position of Quadrant Quay 

This marina is located in what was the inner harbour (Yellow Dot).

Plymouth School of Creative Arts

Work on this new school seems to be going very well 

and certainly looks to be on schedule to open 

for the new academic year in September.

The school will form part of the major redevelopment taking place in and around Millbay Docks, which is the most recent waterfront site to be transformed by large residential developments.

Reclining Figure

Making the most of the sun between the showers.

Skeleton

Another apartment block begins to take shape at the Millbay Dock development.
(Whoops! Not apartments, this is to be a new school. Thanks for the comment)

Siamese Cranes

From this angle they appear conjoined.

More waterfront apartment blocks begin to take shape.

This development is taking place in Millbay Dock, once a commercial port and ship repair yard.

But now it is to be a large marina with the now familiar shore-side mix of

restaurants, bars, boutiques and galleries, topped with balconied apartments.

Another "Waterfront" village ......

...... is taking shape. 

This one is being built around a newly opened, 187 berth marina, in Millbay Dock.

The development is planned to provide, the now familiar mix of, high rise waterfront apartment blocks, 

sat on top of a range of bars, restaurants, boutiques and galleries at quayside level.

Hollywood has its Walk of Fame ....

.........  but Plymouth has its Star Wall.

The Hollywood Walk of Fame contains over 2,500 brass stars embedded in the pavement.

Plymouth's Star Wall contains 16 metal stars fixed to the wall at the gate of Millbay Docks, 

where these stars stepped ashore from the iconic Trans-Atlantic liners that sailed from 

New York to Europe during the 20s, 30s, 40s and into the early 50s, before air travel killed the trade.

These ships didn't dock in Plymouth, the passengers where picked up outside Plymouth Sound and brought ashore by Tender, they then boarded connecting trains direct to London. 

Apparently it was quicker than sailing on to Southampton and catching the London train from there.

Their relationship with Plymouth was obviously fleeting, to say the least. 

But none the less, their footsteps from tender to train are commemorated with a plaque.

Here are six of the plaques, chosen at random.

The others were
Judi Garland, Duke Ellington, Boris Karloff, Lena Horne, Jack Warner,
Walt Disney, Vivien Leigh, Laurence Olivier, Gloria Swanson, Robert Taylor.

All 16 also have stars  embedded on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The view through the porthole.

The redevelopment of the Millbay Docks, the old commercial harbour in Plymouth, is under way

as you can see through the "portholes" in the perimeter dock wall.

The pontoons for the new marina are already in place,

 whilst on shore the clearance is done, and building is scheduled to start soon.

It shouldn't be too long before these architect's sketches become reality.

Applied Mathematics

A tower crane working on the latest phase of the Millbay Dock Development.

From far and near

Yesterday I featured the large floating crane, Matador 3.

You get get a good idea of just how big it is when you view it from a distance. 

It towers above all the buildings in the area.

But up close it looks as if it is climbing out of the water to attack.

The Matador 3

This enormous floating crane, with the tug which moves it, is currently lying alongside the timber wharf in Millbay Docks, at the western end of the waterfront in Plymouth. It can be used for an enormous range marine activities, including the construction of giant offshore windmills, for power generation.

You can see the full details of her specifications and massive lifting power here

This view gives a idea of her true size.

Bullion

As the South West Coast Path follows the shoreline around Devon and Cornwall it passes through some of the most picturesque fishing villages on the South coast, and along the towering cliffs and stunning surf beaches on the Atlantic-facing North coast.



But the Path also passes through some fascinating urban areas.

In Plymouth,  the Waterfront Walk, runs for about 10 miles, from Jennycliff to the Cremyll Ferry, and offers many insights into the history of the city, for example here at Millbay Docks.

Millions of pounds worth of bullion was

regularly handled at Millbay, arriving from Australia, South and West Africa and the United States.

Gold shipments from Plymouth to New York were common, especially just before the Second World War.

Between 1932 and 1934 over £1m worth of gold and silver ingots and sovereigns was landed at Millbay - salvaged from the Peninsula & Oriental liner Egypt which sank off France in 1922.

The inscription around the base tells of such a stack needing only one policeman to guard it.

How times have changed!