Residentials official at Ripon

A COUNCIL has given permission for boaters to officially permanently live on their boats at Ripon Marina.

It was one of many marinas on the system where boaters were already residential, though of course unofficially, Alan Tilbury reveals.

But as councils are becoming aware of the loss of revenue from boaters living rate-free, they are tightening their grip on unofficial permanent living on boats in marinas, by either preventing it or allowing permission and consequently the payment of council rates.

Unanimous

Councillors voted unanimously in favour of the application by British Waterways Marinas Ltd to change the use of 18 moorings at the site to form full residential mooring status.

This is now a policy of BWML, to make a number of its sites officially residential, in an attempt to make up for the increasing shortfall in moorers caused by the glut of new marinas.