London Olympics spawns marine business opportunities

The project is part of the leisure and regeneration plans for Limehouse Basin and the Lower Lea Valley. The vision for the Limehouse Quay scheme includes moorings for restaurant barges, community boats and Thames sailing charters as well as waterside businesses.

As the lead regeneration agency for the Lower Lea Valley, LTGDC’s aim is its transformation into a vibrant, high quality and sustainable mixed use city district with unrivalled landscape containing new high quality parkland and water features.

Mark Blackwell, business development manager at British Waterways said, ‘The London 2012 Olympic & Paralympic Games, coupled with the construction of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link and nearby Stratford City, provide a superb opportunity to breathe new life into east London’s canals and rivers, creating a world class waterway legacy for London. The vision for the Lower Lea Valley is for a ‘Water City’, a new destination where leisure and business opportunities are created around the waterway.

‘We are looking for an operator who can help us turn Limehouse Quay into a leisure destination, that’s got colour and character. It’s perfectly located with its own Docklands Light Railway station and a direct waterway route to the Olympic Park.’

Limehouse Basin on the banks of the Thames is at the start of a waterway route to Old Ford Locks on the River Lee Navigation, where visitors will be able to access the Greenway and the western spectator entrance to the Olympic Park. The route will also take in Three Mills Island, Bromley-by-Bow, which is home to the world’s oldest standing tidal mill.

John Middleton, head of economic development for London Thames Gateway Development Corporation said, ‘The River Lee is the heart of east London and was once a key driver of its economy. Our ambition is to improve access, awareness and enjoyment of the river by realising its potential to connect and regenerate the areas along its course. With a creative operator on board I’m hopeful that we can focus east London’s past strength as the vehicle to delivering a vibrant and renewed future for the Lower Lea Valley as a whole.’

The waterbus service to the Olympic Park will be one of many floating business opportunities on offer at Limehouse Quay. Mark Blackwell said, ‘At 4mph the waterbus service is realistically going to appeal more to those visitors wanting a leisurely journey to the Olympic Park, seeing east London from a different perspective. The service will be able to offer visitors an unusual way to travel to the Olympic Park via its surrounding network of historic canals and rivers.

‘The waterways are rich in history and wildlife and will, we believe, surprise and delight visitors in the lead up to, during and after the 2012 Games.

Information for potential boating base and waterbus operators is available from: www.britishwaterways.co.uk/limehousequay