New £500,000 retail and office development at Amble harbour is open for business

Coquet House is the new home of Warkworth Harbour Commissioners and a number of other tenants, including four retailers on the ground floor.

Commissioners’ chairman, Maurice Burnett, said: “This is a great achievement for the whole team after years of planning. Finally, we have a modern, user-friendly building, fit for the demands of a 21st century harbour.

"I would like to thank staff for all their time, hard work and perseverance and welcome harbour users, whether regulars or visitors, to come and see this wonderful building.”

Coquet House will house the harbour master and administrative staff and also has a large, multipurpose community room which is available for meetings and functions and is licensed for weddings and civil partnerships. It will also serve as a board room for the Commissioners.

Retail tenants are: Bayside Hairdressing run by Amanda Hume who has relocated from Queen Street; Matt Robson Artwork who already has shops in Alnwick and Morpeth; The Window Dresser owned by soft furnishings and décor expert Wendy Baxter; and Salt & Co run by trained silversmith Martha Gothorp.

On the first floor the RSPB has a new office for its Coquet Island team.

The units generate valuable income for Warkworth Harbour Commissioners to cover the costs of harbour maintenance.

The building has been constructed over the past 16 months by Amble based DP Builders.

The development helps the Commissions move closer to its greener, net zero objectives by delivering a much more energy efficient building with solar panels and air source heat pumps for heating and hot water.

The previous harbour commission office – now returning to the name of its original purpose, The Old Customs House, has been let out.

Beth Keen and Matt MacDonagh are creating a new café for visitors to the Little Shore to be called the Old Customs House Tearooms.

They are a young, local couple who previously operated the Artique café at the old Marina Arms site on the Wynd. They are hoping to be up and running in April.

A larger launch event for Coquet House is planned in the summer.