Barnbougle units progress
Barnbougle owner Richard Sattler on the site of the first of 20 new four-bedroom units being built for golfing accommodation at the Bridport site.
August 14, 2024
The first of 20 four-bedroom units is starting to rise above the sand dunes at Barnbougle as the golfing destination increases its premium accommodation offerings for visitors.
Owner Richard Sattler said the first building was number eight in the row, with units to be developed progressively either side of it over the coming years.
“After all this waiting for the last two years with approvals to satisfy everyone it is very exciting – it’s been a long journey and it was always going to be a hard one because it’s a difficult site, it’s low lying and we knew we’d have to build it up we wanted to get the nice effect of being on really genuine beachfront,” Mr Sattler said.
Under its planning approval, no habitable area within the development is allowed lower than a height of 6.1 metres.
The floor of the living areas will be level in height to the sand dunes with a deck extending out onto the top of the dunes for access to Barnbougle Beach.
“With all the authorities and government departments that poke their nose in they are expecting sea levels to rise to about 6m in the next couple of years, so we have had to take all precautions, and after being overseas for a couple of months I realised an awful lot of the world is going to get flooded before we do,” he quipped.
While Mr Sattler’s not willing to say how much the project will cost, he said it was a big injection for the local economy and employment opportunities.
“I am too scared to think about it,” he said.
“The first one is a prototype, so we know that as we get to the end we will find the best ways and smoother ways to do things before we start the others.
“I reckon we should get it finished in the next three or four months and then we should be able to finish one every three to four months after that if we can fine tune a few issues.”
The lower part of the building features specially-designed sandy-gold block work in the shape of a wave, with naturally faded timber and glass to be a predominant feature of the upper level.
“If we don’t do them well enough people won’t stay here and they won’t be successful,” he said.
“So it is in our best interest to make them better than what most people expect them to be.”