By TOM JACKSON THE contractor behind Wisbech s £50million waterfront regeneration celebrated reaching the highest point of the new boathouse with a topping out ceremony. It has taken just eight months for Wisbech-based Kier Eastern to reach the highest po

By TOM JACKSON

THE contractor behind Wisbech's £50million waterfront regeneration celebrated reaching the highest point of the new boathouse with a topping out ceremony.

It has taken just eight months for Wisbech-based Kier Eastern to reach the highest point of the £4million ship-shaped business centre at the heart of the Nene Waterfront Regeneration Project.

To celebrate, senior Fenland councillors joined Kier's regional director Paul Greenly on the rooftop for the ceremony.

Mr Greenly placed a fir tree, a tradition to ward off evil spirits and wish luck to future occupants, on the roof before he and Fenland District Council leader Geoff Harper tightened the final bolt in a lightning conductor, the highest point on the building.

Cllr Harper was also presented with a mounted trowel from Kier Eastern, to mark his participation in the ceremony.

Mr Greenly said: "This event marks a significant milestone in the development, of which we are extremely proud.

"The scheme is on target to finish in July and, once complete, it will not only provide a flexible and practical resource for the town's business population, but also act as a shining example of the monumental effort to transform Wisbech's and Fenland's economies."

Cllr Harper said: "The Boathouse business centre will be a physical symbol of the aspirations of not just Wisbech, but the whole of Fenland.

"It is going to dramatically alter Wisbech and particularly compliment its Georgian history by putting a 21st Century building and development at this end of the town."

When complete, the business centre will comprise a two-storey rectangular office block and a three-storey elliptical shaped building with conference and training facilities, a yacht club, cafe, rest areas, offices and access to the Harbour Square.

The regeneration project will also see 300 homes built on the 20-acre site, which has been derelict for 20 years.