PREVIEW

WORDS BYLINE: Brad Harper
A businessman wanting to expand his seaside oyster shack onto a beach has slammed objectors as “NIMBYs” and told them to "like it or lump it".
James Green is the director of the Whitstable Oyster Fishery Company (WOFC), which owns a stretch of the shoreline in Whitstable, Kent. His company runs four restaurants including The Forge, to which he intends to add a new beachside seating area.
But the plan has been met with opposition - not only from locals but from the Environment Agency and the Whitstable Beach Campaign
Now, Mr Green has launched a fresh broadside against the 200-plus objectors fighting the scheme.
“The Whitstable economy is based on tourism, like it or lump it,” he said. “In this day and age you have to do things that are going to make it somewhere people want to go.
“To me, it is completely bonkers that it shouldn’t be supported. I am not looking to build flats on the beach - it’s decking and a pergola, for f***’s sake.”
Mr Green’s family-run business employs 200 people and harvests around two million oysters a year, playing a major role in cementing Whitstable's reputation as a tourist hotspot.
He says the new seating area would allow visitors to enjoy oysters and wine on the beach, offering another reason for people to visit the town.
But the fresh bid has reignited a fierce row that saw a similar scheme defeated in court five years ago, with the Environment Agency and the Whitstable Beach Campaign among those currently objecting.
Mr Green said: “I don’t like to use the term but it is nimbyism.”
‘Nimbyism’ is a slang term referring to locals who object to new developments near their home, derived from the acronym ‘Not In My Backyard’.
He went on: “Why did it become personal? I don’t know, really. Because we’re a family business, it’s a relatively small town?”
He also cited a "general antipathy" towards his company, suggesting the UK has a broader problem with commercial enterprises trying to expand.
Paul McNally, speaking on behalf of the Whitstable Beach Campaign, said there was "no justification" for the extension.
“Our remit, for many years, has been a simple one – to protect the unspoilt nature of Whitstable beach and maintain public access to it," he told The Guardian. "Both of which would be compromised by the current development proposal.”
Green party councillor Stuart Heaver added that Whitstable is a "close-knit community", highly protective of the maritime town's shoreline, noting there is "a history in the town of a little bit of friction between the company and local residents”.
The Whitstable Yacht Club, which stores boats on the beach and spearheaded the opposition to Mr Green's previous expansion plans in 2021, is supporting the new application.
The planning application is currently making its way through Canterbury City Council's usual processes and will be determined in due course.