Beach House Cafe sits in an enviable location on the sandspit at Mudeford Sandbank. It has been a popular refreshment facility serving visitors to the area all year round.
Unfortunately, the timber clad building was extensively fire damaged on 2 November 2018. A temporary food offer ran on the site during the 2019 season, to ensure that visitors were still provided for. This utilised converted shipping containers as a short-term measure, but there is a requirement to replace the building to ensure that the area’s natural beauty is not compromised, which would negatively impact on the visitor experience. There is also a need to make provision under leasehold arrangements.
Proposals to cabinet are to approve funding for an improved and carefully thought out rebuild which would include a range of sustainable measures such as the use of recycled construction materials including reclaimed timber. The new building would also benefit from ecologically sound principles including use of solar energy, rain and grey water harvesting and the use of a heat recovery system. The building would also be designed to promote a better control of waste, to address the impact of noise in the area and to give better accessibility to all visitors.
Councillor Lewis Allison, Portfolio Holder for Tourism, Leisure and Communities said; “This truly outstanding natural location needs to continue to provide facilities for the people who visit. We’re considering the options to ensure we can provide these in an environmentally friendly way with a range of built-in measures that show sensitivity and respect for the special surroundings.”
If agreed, the facilities could be open for spring/summer 2021.
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