The Waterfront (Jèrriais: Quartchi du Hâvre, French: Quartier du Havre) is a district of

St Helier St Helier (; Jèrriais: ; ) is the Capital city, capital of Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands in the English Channel. It is the most populous of the twelve parishes of Jersey, with a population of 35,822, over one-third of the island' ...

in the island of Jersey. It is built on reclaimed land to the west of the Albert Pier and to the south of the Esplanade, however the definition is ambiguous and can be extended to cover older parts of the town

History

On 24 April 1979, a States Committee was formed to investigate alternatives for reclamation because La Collette was due to be filled six years ahead of schedule. In September that year, they reported on a new scheme of roughly 160 vergées (29 hectares). However, it was considered that this would not be ready in time and would outstrip the supply of filling material in the island. Alternatively, it was proposed a smaller area of around 20 vergées to increase the working space on the Albert Pier. In June 1980, the States voted to approve the reclamation of 58.5 vergées (10.5 hectares) of land to the west of Albert Pier.Island Development Committee
P.1981/38 Land Reclamation of 35 acres west of the Albert Pier: Report and Proposition
Lodged au Greffe, 14 April 1981. Jersey Heritage Catalogue ccessed 11 February 2022 In April 1981, the a proposition was lodged ''au Greffe'' proposing an expansion of this land reclamation to 78.7 vergées (14.1 hectares) because the larger scheme was less costly per vergée, extended the life of the site for tipping and allowed more flexibility in the design of future open space. The filling of land began in May 1985, initially confined to the part closest to the Albert Pier to enable the construction of the new Elizabeth ferry harbour. During the reclamation, concerns were raised about the disposal of incinerator ash by States Members. The (2008) Council of Ministers noted that " he method of disposalin the late 1980s and early 1990s would not be acceptable today n 2008. In 1989, a proposition was lodged ''au Greffe'' to approve a four-storey car park building (with three floors below ground) and a new postal headquarters and magistrates court. This also proposed to replace the large at-grade roundabout previously approved with the grade-separated junction and underpass present on Route de la Libération today. In 2008, the Radisson SAS building won the

Carbuncle Cup The Carbuncle Cup is an architecture prize, given annually, originally by the magazine ''Building Design'', and since 2024 by ''The Fence'', to "the ugliest building in the United Kingdom completed in the last 12 months". It was intended to be a ...

, an annual architectural prize for the worst designed building in the British Isles.

Future

In 2021–22, the Jersey Development Company prepared plans to regenerate the Waterfront site, involving the removal of the Waterfront centre and the construction of 1,000 homes, alongside parks, a swimming pool and cinema. The JDC's plans involve the demolition of La Frégate Café, affectionately known as the "upside-down boat café". La Frégate was an early work by

Will Alsop William Allen Alsop (12 December 1947 – 12 May 2018) was a British architect and Professor of Architecture at University for the Creative Arts's Canterbury School of Architecture. He was responsible for several distinctive and controversial ...

, who won the Stirling Prize for his architecture. Heritage campaigning group

The Twentieth Century Society The Twentieth Century Society (abbreviated to C20), founded in 1979 as The Thirties Society, is a British charity that campaigns for the preservation of architectural heritage from 1914 onwards. It is formally recognised as one of the National ...

applied to the States to have the café listed, despite the building being too modern to be regularly listed. Alsop's former colleague Marcos Rosello notes "local support in Jersey" for the "much-loved building", hoping the building could be relocated rather than removed entirely.

Sports

In 2021 and in previous years, the Waterfront played host to the international

Super League triathlon Supertri is a global leader in short course triathlon with a mission to inspire growth in both fans of the professional sport and participants of all age abilities. Supertri organises three types of triathlon races under it's brand pillars: Sup ...

, alongside courses in cities such as London and Munich.

References

{{Reflist Saint Helier Jersey