Tower Bridge Barges

Jan's crime is to hanker for the good things of the past, is it?

yep.....by the side of the custom house steps......must have made me senile as well as I am getting into the habit of repeating myself!

that reminds me.....I think......:-)

Erm, Kevin my dear man, if you think I should ever NOT hanker for the good things of the past, then you are much mistaken.

I'd like to add a slightly different point of view to this thread.

I don't own a property in one of the affected buildings but I do live in one. The residents are only objecting to the proliferation of boats beyond the consent of the council - only 5 moorings are permitted, but there are upwards of 20 boats there now. Yet when I moved in four years ago there were only those 5 boats.

All the residents are doing is seeking is a return to the permitted number of boats - ie 5. We're objecting on visual pollution issue but refuse and noise pollution as well. For me the barges are the 'caravans' of the river and I suspect some of the supporters for the barges may well object to caravans parked permanently outside your properties :)

Catherine,

do the residents of the barges really cause that much trouble? the refuse issue is one that I had not thought about to be honest.
Do they have refuse collections/ bins etc.? I think they would probably have to pay council tax if the mooring is permanent.

Could Southwark Council legally collect C.Tax if the moorings were considered illegal?

Do these 'posh' Mudlarks have riotous parties? singing Yo Ho Ho and a bottle of rum ( sorry thats pirates!) If thats the case I suggest you take a bottle of grog , a french loaf and go and join 'em! Seriously you have the right to peace and quiet in your own home, and if the noise levels are really that bad perhaps a call to environmental health noise department may help?

Personally I'd hobble on to the jetty clutching a bottle and if they did not let this old land-lubber on throw it at 'em!

I personally like to think of the river being used today as it has been over the centuries, for working vessels, recreational vessels, and living accomodation. for this old land-lubber to sit on the deck and see only the sky above, sheer bliss.

I may be wrong, but aren't most of the barges owned by one person who is turning them into floating gardens, and do people live below all these gardens? I think it might be jealousy on the part of the flat owners, I would love to live on one of them - not only are they actually on the river but they have gardens to boot - more than the 'affected' flat owners can boast ...

Like Catherine I also rent in one of those flats. I, on the other hand, think that the barges are fantastic and add to the character of the river. They make no more noise than any one else living in the flats and as for rubbish, the only rubbish i've noticed spilling out is from some of the big wheelie bins behind some of the newest flats.

I think its disgraceful that people are complaining about them. Do these people have nothing better to do with their time??

Hello All,

I am one of the great "unwashed" who lives on a barge at Tower Bridge.
I'd just like to make a few points:

There have been Moorings here for well over 100 years, in constant use.

The flats are a MUCH more recent addition. They knew the barges were there. They had the choice to live there or spend their £100's of thousands elsewhere.

Indeed the flats are mostly built in converted warehouses. These warehouses were served by barges not all thaqt dissimilar to the ones that now occupy the river on Ancient Moorings. Ironic eh ?

There are only a tiny number of people who have an issue with this. Indeed many people who I speak to who live in the adjacent flats are in support and understand that rivers have boats on them !

As far as the practicalities are concerned:
We DO have normal waste disposal arrangements.
There Lawyers, Salespeople, Film-Makers, Families, etc etc who live there. Just like ANY part of any town in other words.
The moorings are low cost homes for all of us.
We're environmentally friendly
We are a community and seek to share our blessings with others, for example opening up the floating gardens (which won the Southwark "Gardens in Bloom" award ... so not really an eyesore at all !) to the public.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that we're just NORMAL, average Londoners.

We not only think that we have a legal right to stay, but think it's important that we do. The wider issue is that people LOVE the river, and if we close off all access to it to all but those who can spend £1million + on a luxury flat, then that can't be good for our communities surely ?

Or maybe I'm just wrong, maybe the seagulls ( which make a noise) and the fish (which are smelly) and the water (which is REALLY wet!) should all go and we can Concrete over the whole river ... (What a waste of prime Real Estate) possibly including a few tubs of flowers. Or maybe just make the whole lot into a Shopping centre !

If anyone agrees that we should keep things as they are for the benefit of not just those who live there, but those who enjoy looking at, and participating in the moorings, and for future generations of Londoners and tourists alike. Then we'd love to hear from you.

Please e-mail your support.

Paul -

I support you 110% (and I live in one of the flats!).

I'm very jealous and would much rather live on the boats than in my rather sterile, imnpersonal flat!

If you need any help campaigning or anything (if the idiots take it that far) please contact me.

A small irony.......if the moorings were returned to the original working craft only, there is a very distinct possbility that full on commercial vessels would look very much more unsightly than the varied and Bohemian collection of homes and gardens currently moored.

I imagine 5 commercial craft could probably fill approximately the same area and have a much higher profile, probably obscuring more of the river for a greater period of time.

5 thames cruiser boats of 50M x 15M x 8m high would look a real mess if you ask me.

Be careful what you wish for would be my first thought