Anyone know Kingston? What's this on the Thames?

[Miljea]

The bit with the red circle?

TIA

A marina

Have you looked on street view? It’s water. Looks like derelict marina or water purification plant.

I don't know but I drove through recently and saw a sign somewhere along the Portsmouth Road saying "save Seething Wells" so whatever it is it's at some sort of risk. I would be curious to find out.

They're the Surbiton Seething Wells filter beds.

They're old water treatment works, unused since 1992, there's been lots of attempts to build on them (such as turning it into a marina), but it's currently just derelict open land that is very inaccessible.

Lots of wildlife there, I walk past there a lot and see lots of different birds.

When you put Seething Wells into google it suggests the filter beds:
‘ Towards the west end of the of Seething Wells riverbank there is a marina.[9] Midway along the riverbank there are 7, approximately 8 metre deep, decommissioned filter beds known as the Seething Wells Filter Beds (or less commonly, the Surbiton Filter Beds).[10][5] At the southwest end of the filter bed site is a former coal wharf, with a former pump house building on top; near the site's centre there are a few pumps and pipes which are still in use.[11] At the northeast section of the riverbank there is another marina, with Ravens Ait around 20 metres further northeast in the river.[12]

The decommissioned filter beds are within the 0.23 km² Riverside South Conservation Area which was identified in 2003.[13]’

Hmm. I wonder what a 'filter bed' did??

I know they're quite ugly to look at!

If that’s Portsmouth Road, about a mile or so up from Catherine Road, I always thought it was an old water treatment plant?

Yes, it’s very ugly!

It filters water - it's just sand/gravel that filters the water, dirty water goes in the top, clean relatively safe water comes out the bottom.

There are also filter beds (still in use) between Hanworth and Sunbury. You can see them from the raised A316. They regularly replace the sand etc

They are the Seething Wells filter beds. There’s a big campaign at the moment regarding their future. I haven’t been following closely but something to do with whether they should be developed or left as a community asset type thing. I read yesterday that Extinction Rebellion have agreed to take on the cause.

If you’re looking in terms of house buying the area around there is lovely and seething wells doesn’t adversely affect the are at all. However if it is developed (say with apartments) it would block a lot of the view of the river. A park on the other hand would be amazing!

If you’re looking at buying, that’s not the prettiest stretch of the river but it’s quite short and then gets much nicer. Nice place to live (I imagine as I haven’t lived there myself) as it’s convenient for amenities and the quick trains from Surbiton.

No, I have a DS about to go to Kingston Uni. There's a Halls there with en-suites (wibble...) 'Seething Wells'; Ex mental health hospital; or where he's going, Middle Mill. No en-suites 😳😂

I was just curious- almost as to how such ugly pools of stagnant water are still 'there' so close to happening London.

almost as to how such ugly pools of stagnant water are still 'there' so close

They are not actually visible from anywhere though really, only from the path adjacent to them, they are a good 20m below the height of the road.

There's no chance of them being turned into apartments, turning them into a marina was the most recent proposal - so still not built up at all from where they are,still under the road height as the adjacent marina is, but that was turned down, but I imagine something similar will make it through at some point - extending the riverside walk past it will eventually convince planning that something could be there.

There's a Halls there with en-suites (wibble...) 'Seething Wells'; Ex mental health hospital; or where he's going, Middle Mill. No en-suites 😳😂

That might be true, but a lot better chance of survival drunkenly falling into the hogsmill than into the thames on a walk home.

@sirfredfredgeorge

Do you know why the marina idea was turned down? Sound perfect for the place.

OP, there are all sorts of places even closer in if you look at the redevelopments of King’s Cross or Battersea Power Station etc.

They played a really important role in combatting a cholera outbreak in London.
I thought the area had been approved not for housing, but for industrial storage.

There's a big campaign to protect them, to protect the wildlife that lives there.

Do you know why the marina idea was turned down? Sound perfect for the place

historicengland.org.uk/content/docs/legal/appeal-decision-seething-wells-filter-beds-pdf/

Seems to be doesn't agree it's sufficiently positive to take away what is essentially green belt land - I think you'll need a lot more positive use (watersports/river access/nature access) and a lot less business/homes/car parks. But the appeal did seem to agree a marina would be a suitable development within the rules of the "metropolitan open land". But I only skimmed the pdf.