Work on Exmouth’s new seafront watersports centre has been temporarily paused as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.

Developer Grenadier and building contractors Devon Contractors Ltd have confirmed they have temporarily stopped work at the Sideshore watersports centre development in Queen’s Drive.

They said while Government advice would enable them to continue work, they strongly feel the health and safety of the staff should be put first.

Grenadier’s plans for Exmouth seafront, which include the watersports centre, were due to be finished in time for the summer of 2020.

As well as the watersports centre, the Sideshore development will be home to dining facilities run by renowned award-winning celebrity chef, Michael Caines.

Exmouth-based company Edge Watersports are set to run the sea-based activity side of the centre.

Aiden Johnson-Hugill, director of Grenadier, said: “The creation of Sideshore may have been temporarily put on hold, but we are

committed to creating something rather extraordinary.

“We are confident that once open, Sideshore, Exmouth’s new community focused watersports centre will offer visitors and residents of Exmouth unrivalled access to two miles of waterfront, alongside space to eat, meet and enjoy the beach.

“In the meantime, we are adhering to Government advice to

protect the health and safety of our workforce.

“We look forward to unveiling Sideshore to the public as soon as possible, and we are confident it will not only operate as a sustainable business, but create a lasting legacy for the local community.”

A spokesman for Devon Contractors added: “We have been following Public Health England guidance to ensure we protect our people, our subcontractors, and our suppliers’ health and safety.

“We will continue to monitor the impact and provide an update in due course.”

The watersports centre marks the second phase of a three step plan to regenerate Exmouth seafront.

The first part was the realignment of the Queen’s Drive road and car park, completed in 2019.

Plans for an 80-bedroom hotel and luxury restaurant as part of phase three are on hold as East Devon District Council’s scrutiny committee raised concerns over the make-up of a select committee tasked with overseeing the plans.