Watermans Marina Project Back to Square One
Confirmation given that latest scheme not proceeding
Work has been abandoned at the waterside site. Picture: Brentford TV
January 16, 2026
The long saga of the Watermans Marina project looks set to continue after confirmation was given that the project will not proceed. The site has been subject more than a decade of uncertainty, stalled plans and community opposition surrounding the future of the Watermans Park foreshore.
The failure of the latest scheme, which had been widely anticipated due to a lack of activity at the site, marks the latest turn in a troubled history that has seen shifting proposals, rising costs, legal disputes over moorings, and strong resistance from local houseboat residents.
A The marina scheme first emerged as part of wider plans to regenerate the Watermans Gardens area, including the re-provision of 26 houseboat moorings and improvements to the foreshore and parkland. The site, a shallow inlet separated from the Thames by Brentford Ait, has long been home to a mix of licensed and unlicensed vessels, with the council seeking to formalise moorings and reshape the waterfront.
However, the project quickly became contentious. Houseboat residents launched campaigns and petitions urging the council to abandon what they described as a costly “super-marina”, warning of environmental damage, loss of habitat and the displacement of long-standing river communities. One petition called on the council to cancel the £5.45 million scheme and adopt a lower-cost alternative developed by residents themselves.
A visualisation of an earlier plan for Watermans Marina
Despite public consultations and design work, the marina project struggled to advance. The council’s own planning pages continued to describe the scheme in outline form, but no construction phase began, and the foreshore remained occupied by a number of vessels moored without permission between Victoria Steps Quay and the former Watermans Arts Centre.
Sam Tilby, Investment Property Manager at Hounslow Council told this week’s Syon and Brentford Area Forum meeting that the council would be meeting with the Port of London Authority to discuss the way forward for the site and any progress would be disclosed to the public.
The announcement follows internal reviews of the scheme’s viability, rising costs, and the withdrawal of development partners involved in related regeneration plans.
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