Bermondsey residents slam plans for £25m luxury superyacht to hold 1,500 people parties

By Robert Firth, Local Democracy Reporter

Residents living by the River Thames have hit out at plans for a luxury superyacht to hold events for up to 1,500 people at a pier outside their homes.

People living in apartments overlooking Butler’s Wharf in Bermondsey fear the streets below will be overrun by the hundreds of passengers disembarking the £25 million boat following night-time events.

Residents of the sought-after flats, where two-beds sell in excess of £1 million, said they were worried about noise and antisocial behaviour from revellers as they leave celebrations on the 282ft long yacht.

The vessel – which will be called Oceandiva London – hopes to play host to weddings, conferences and film premieres when it launches later this year.

But people living around Grade-II listed Shad Thames – a cobbled street once home to London’s largest warehouse complex in the 1800s – say the giant vessel will overwhelm the area and isn’t wanted.

Paul Crosbie, 68, who has lived in a flat in the neighbourhood for 22 years, said: “It’s going to be the biggest leisure, pleasure boat on the river. It’s the size of a football pitch.  There is only one gangplank to get people off and Southwark is unlikely to give them planning permission for another.

“The boat can fit hundreds of people. It’s going to take them over an hour to get everyone off. Oceandiva’s boats currently operate on the Rhine which is three times the width of the Thames. It’s completely unsuitable for this stretch of river.”

The Oceandiva vessel will be based at the Royal Docks in Newham, but it will stop at seven other piers between Woolwich and Tower Millennium Pier in Tower Hamlets. Oceandiva is applying to Newham Council for a licence to operate the superyacht from 11am to 2am.

Kathleen Ehrlich, chair of Shad Thames Residents Association [STRA], added: “STRA is very concerned about the Oceandiva’s proposal to use Butler’s Wharf and the impact such a huge vessel might have on residents and businesses.

“We are worried about the lack of controls on the large number of passengers who will be using the boat once they have left the vessel and are free to wander through our narrow streets, especially late at night.”

Councillor Rachel Bentley, Liberal Democrat member for North Bermondsey said: “The owners and operators of Oceandiva have been trying to bring their super luxury events vessel to London for many years and need to respect residents’ repeated message that it is not wanted.”

Oceandiva said its London vessel would “revolutionise the marine environment, as the UK’s first CO2-neutral venue on the Thames, part of an innovative operation to decarbonise the capital’s river.”

Captain of Oceandiva London Robert Dwan, who is spearheading the project, said: “The residents of Butler’s Wharf are the key focus of our comprehensive pier management plan that we have submitted to the Metropolitan Police to approve.

We have held meetings with Southwark Council and the residents, and our pier management plan directly addresses all of the residents’ concerns comprehensively and sympathetically. We will be sharing the plan with residents once approved by the police.

“The operation of Oceandiva London will not only respect TLC’s [Thames Luxury Charters] current codes of practices already agreed with the residents at Butler’s Wharf, but it will improve the standards currently in place.”

Pictured top: CGI image of what Oceandiva London could look like (Picture: Oceandiva)