Our permanent maritime structures correspondent Angus Young has spotted something potentially significant in council papers.
Five years ago public access to a quintessentially Hull experience was closed off. At the time, metal fencing went up on Victoria Pier to coincide with the start of work to build new flood defence walls in the immediate area. However, when that work was finished the fencing stayed up and has remained in place ever since. Warning signs say; “Dangerous structure. Keep off.” Sections of the council-owned pier had been cordoned off on safety grounds before the Environment Agency’ contractors started on the new flood defences and there were rumours that part of the structure suffered further damage during those works.
Now, after stating last October that it was “actively exploring future options” for the pier, the council has awarded a contract to a civil engineering firm to draw up plans for its removal.
Originally constructed in 1810, the pier has changed a bit since then. It was converted to a T-shaped pier in 1847 and was known as Corporation Pier until 1856 when it was renamed in Queen Victoria’s honour following a Royal visit. It probably reached its peak in the Edwardian era when it featured covered walkways and an upper deck viewing area.
Since those halcyon days, various elements of the pier have disappeared but the main structure remained a popular place for locals and tourists alike to visit. A stroll across the pier’s timber boards with the sound of the Humber tides lapping up against the wooden support columns underneath and the sight of a vast estuary spread out before you with an even larger sky above provided as much a sensory overload as a night at Hull Fair.
When The Deep opened, the pier provided the perfect spot to admire the setting of architect Terry Farrell’s epic landmark at the confluence of the estuary and the River Hull. When French artists Carabosse staged a hypnotic fire spectacular on the pier in 2009, those lucky enough to see it still maintained it was the best-ever Freedom Festival show.
It really is an iconic and unique piece of Hull and an integral part of the city’s maritime history. Thanks to Geore Orwell, Wigan’s pier might be more famous but in reality that one was demolished in 1929. Hull still has its wonderful pier but for how much longer?
The new contract runs until January 2027. By then, a scheme to remove it will have presumably been drawn up ahead of any final decision on the current pier’s fate. There could be an option to build a new one, although nothing official has yet been said about that. Instead, the only clue about the future is a line in the council’s annual budget proposals which are currently going through the decision-making process at the Guildhall.
In the council’s capital programme there’s a £1m allocation listed for Victoria Pier earmarked to be spent in 2025/6. In reality these allocations can be pushed back if necessary and with extra spending now required for urgent repairs to Drypool Bridge, it’s likely the budget for the pier could do just that. £1m would probably cover the cost of removing the pier. As for a possible replacement, piers don’t come cheap. A proposed pier in Withernsea came with an estimated price tag of £8m before the project was abandoned two years ago when the idea was said to be no longer financially viable.
But what price history? What price heritage? The pier is as much part of Hull’s maritime past as any other. Ships carrying cargo from across the globe arrived at the pier, what will remain to teach future generations of this essential part of our city?