Government to look again at making Douglas Head a conservation area

Cabinet Office 're-examining' proposals

Government is set to look again at the potential to make Douglas Head a conservation area.

A consultation was held in 2021 seeking views on whether the area should be designated as such.

In that consultation, 61 respondents were asked the question 'Should Douglas Head be a conservation area?'.

Forty-seven said yes, 12 said no, and two didn't answer.

Despite that, the Cabinet Office said it had no plans to go ahead with it.

In their initial proposal for designating Douglas Head as a conservation area, David Wertheim and Charles Guard recounted its many uses throughout history.

The area was once home to amusement rides and, during the second world war, home to a secret radar station.

In his newly-published response, the minister - David Ashford - says (in respect of the consultation): 'It was considered that the existing protections afforded to Douglas Head through the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016, the Area Plan for the East 2020, the Douglas Head Act 2000 and the Wildlife Act 1990, were more than adequate to protect those aspects of Douglas Head that respondents considered important. 

However, he adds: 'The Department is currently in the process of re-examining the work around the potential for Douglas Head to become a conservation area.'

A conservation area is an area of special architectural or historic interest, the character or appearance of which it is desirable to enhance or preserve.

A number of areas in Douglas are already conservation areas, including North Quay and the Promenade.

Because of the special nature of Conservation Areas, there are tighter planning controls and obligations in respect of demolition, new development, property alterations and advertisements and signs. 

You can find the written response HERE.