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Published:
March
13,
2010
Final
piece of Burnham's dismantled beach pool will be saved
Work
to dismantle Burnham-On-Sea's beach boating pool was almost complete
on Saturday (March 13th) - but for one final piece of the concrete
structure, pictured above, which is to be retained as a permanent
memorial.
Contractors
working on the demolition told Burnham-On-Sea.com that the final
chunk of the landmark will soon be moved into position on The
Esplanade, alongside a new plaque.
 The
controversial work to remove the pool began
on Wednesday and since then large pieces of the debris have
been taken away by bulldozers to Maddock's Slade - as pictured
on the right - from where lorries have then taken away the material.
The
pool, built in the 1920s, was given to Burnham by members of the
Braithwaite family, who constructed it in thanks for the safe
return of their five sons from the Great War and this will be
reflected on the new plaque.
Burnham-On-Sea.com
was first to report
last summer that the landmark was in jeopardy when cash-strapped
Sedgemoor District Council said it was launching a study into
the cost of the repairs needed to retain it.
District
councillors voted in December to have the pool removed due to
a combination of costly repairs and safety concerns. The district
council admitted in January
that the bill to tax payers of demolishing it would be £9,800.
The
absence of the pool has forever changed the appearance of Burnham's
beach north of the pier and a film about its history is currently
being made, as reported here.
The
beach looks barer without the boating pool in place
The
final piece of the pool, pictured above, is being retained as
a memorial
The
work to dismantle the pool took place over the last few days
The
concrete was taken away by JCBs and bulldozers
The
moment the dismantling work began was captured above
The
beach looks empty without the familiar pool in place
The
final chunk of concrete is pictured here on Saturday evening
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