I spotted a story in the Irish Times this morning about Richard Boyd Barrett of the Socialist Workers Party People Before Profit Alliance claiming that the Dun Laoghaire Harbour Company (DLHC) is planning to demolish the Carlisle pier and sell the harbour to Stena. Both have been denied by the DLHC.

Now I am not an official of the DLHC, but as a boat owner and harbour users I spend a lot of time talking to people who do know what is going on, and have a keen interest in the future of the harbour. Unlike RBB who has a banana attitude to development in Dun Laoghaire. I would like to think as a group, we the harbour users, have our ear to the ground on future plans.

At the moment my understanding is that the derelict terminal on the Carlilse pier is to be pulled down (as the DLHC said), because it is a) derelict, and b) contains asbestos. The pier itself certainly is not going to be removed. It is far too valuable. But as the plans for building something new there are on hold (partially because of RBB’s campaigns) it will just be turned into a car park and winter boat storage. While I would prefer to see it replaced with something that the public could benefit from, at least the removal of the current eyesore will open up the views of the harbour for the public.

The other claim that RBB has made is that Stena will buying the harbour. I don’t exactly see how this would work or benefit them, but the word that is going around the waterfront is that Stena will actually be leaving Dun Laoghaire when they retire the current HSS in a few years, and will move to Dublin Port instead. Time will tell whether RBB or I are better informed about what is going on, but I would like to think that as a serious user of the harbour I have more of an interest, and am better informed than that demagogue.

And that brings me to my next point, for all his high and mighty rhetoric Richard Boyd Barrett is actually an obstacle to the public getting the best use out of Dun Laoghaire’s best amenity. He opposed the redevelopment of the Carlisle pier on the grounds that it would deny it to the public and make it the “exclusive property of the super-wealthy”, which to be frank is horse shit. All the development plans included the provision of public spaces, including a water front park. Right now the pier is a derelict building, and historically it was a ferry terminal, so it never was a public amenity.

RBB has also opposed the expansion of the very successful marina. Instead he wants to “develop the harbour as a working harbour – developing traditional sea related industries and activities, and expanding public access“. I am not sure what traditional sea related industries are, but I know exactly what is needed to improve public access – more places to keep boats.

As far as the likes of RBB is concerned, boat owners are the wealthy. Well Laura and I have been boat owners for three years, and we are a long way feeling wealthy. It often surprises people we tell them “>how much boat you can get for about €5-6,000, which is about what we paid for Chico. That will buy you a decent sized 2nd hand boat that is capable of sailing all around Ireland if you want to do that. That certainly is within the reach of most people in this country and not just the “super rich”. I know civil servants, a plumber and an electrician who own “yachts”. Yeah, if you want to own an 40′ floating pleasure palace you will need big bucks. But a look around Dun Laoghaire harbour with an educated eye will show that most of the boats there are actually quite modest.

The real problem and expense with boat owning is where to keep the thing. Until the marina was built in 2001 the only option was a swing mooring. There weren’t many of these and the waiting period was about a decade. The 450 berth marina arrived (over RBB’s objections) and was full within a year or two which showed the huge level of demand. When Laura and I were discussing buying a boat three years ago our problem was not the purchase price, but getting a spot in the marina to keep it. Luckily they expanded the marina that year and we got one of the new berths.

As Chico is a sail boat our biggest expense now is the marine fees of about €2300 per year. That is the main block for people looking to take up sailing. How would you get around that? Well how about some competition in the provision of marina berths in Dun Laoghaire to drive prices down? That has been proposed, but of course it is being objected to by RBB again.

The level of recreational boat ownership in Ireland lags far behind the rest of Europe (in Stockholm there is a boat for every 6 people) despite us being an island nation. Giving people more options and ability to get involved in water sports would plenty of benefits from job creation to tourism. But don’t expect a short sighted, mean spirited idiot like Richard Boyd Barrett to see that.