“It’s a fantastic day for Margate, for Thanet and for the whole of East Kent. It really is an occasion to remember and an event to mark down in history.” said Thanet council leader Sandy Ezekiel as his spade sunk into the ground.
I suppose I should put 25th November 2008 in my diary then, maybe doodle a few fireworks around it, and then, after thinking about it, I’ll rip the page out and throw it away. Tuesday 25th November 2008 isn’t a fantastic day for me, not yet, and I’ll tell you why.

This is that date when work finally started on the Turner Contemporary, a multi-million pound art gallery in Margate. I don’t really count the ground-breaking ceremony as work but it is the symbolic commencement of work that should mean that by 2011 the Turner Contemporary will be open. But alas I am not holding my breath, and I won’t be celebrating until the building is completed and the first person is through the door.

Why my pessimism? This should be great news for the area and something to rejoice, but for those of you familiar with the project will know that it has been fraught with problems and has faced huge criticism from the local population with regards to the financial costs incurred, the incompetence from local governance, and the steamrollering of the project based on seemingly unachievable projected visitors (100,000 visitors per year).

The world has changed a lot since initial plans were unveiled in 2001, and is an art gallery something that Margate and Thanet needs?

I thought it would be useful to produce a timeline to show the delays with the project and maybe you will get a sense of frustration felt by locals.

• October 2001: £7,000,000 design unveiled and due to be completed by 2004.
• February 2003: Planning permission granted and due to be completed by 2006.
• August 2005: Work due to begin, and completed by 2007 (costs now £25,000,000).
• October 2005: Projected costs rise to £29,500,000.
• February 2006: Design Scrapped after projected costs rise to £50,000,000.
• April 2006: KCC promises Turner Contemporary will cost no more than £15,000,000.
• June 2007: £17,500,000 design unveiled and due to be completed by 2010.
• February 2008: Planning permission granted and due to be completed by 2010.
• November 2008: Work starts on Turner Contemporary and due to be completed by 2011.

The honest question to ask now is will we see the Turner centre up and running by 2011 (or will it be delayed again), and if so, will it be a success? I would love it to be a success, I would love to see Margate reinvigorated, I would love to see this as the catalyst to a new dawn, but my current opinion is that it won’t. Am I a pessimist? Maybe. Am I a realist? Definitely.

At the moment Margate is dying, like many other coastal pleasure towns, so will this be the shot in the arm that it needs, or will it be the straw that broke the camel’s back?

For more information visit www.turnercontemporary.org

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