A ROW has broken out over the creation of a new mooring on the River Trent.
Building work has been taking place on land on the river's south bank, near Wilford Suspension Bridge.
Investigations are taking place to see if the work is legal, with the man developing the land laying claim to own it.
A sign has been put up at the site saying "Suspension Bridge Mooring – Private Mooring – Land Owned by Paul Geary", and also includes his contact details.
But residents claim Mr Geary does not have the right to develop the land, which is near the site of the Becket School's former Upper School site, off Wilford Lane, West Bridgford.
A Wilford Lane resident, who asked not to be named, said: "He's been there for the last couple of months.
"He has no permission to do it. Being on the River Trent and right in public view, it's of public interest."
Contacted by the Post yesterday, Mr Geary said he was unable to comment. He said: "I cannot talk because the police are involved."
A Notts Police spokeswoman said the force had received complaints about the site.
Solicitors dealing with the sale of the land where the old Becket School stood are now trying to find out who, if anyone, owns the land.
An agent in the school site sale, who also asked not to be named, said: "We are trying to get to the bottom of it.
"The land we are selling – the former Becket Upper School site – is unregistered and under offer. We are due to exchange contracts any day.
"When the neighbour brought this issue to our attention we looked at the legal information and the solicitor's view was this wasn't our land.
"Further digging has now shown it might be within our ownership.
"However, because the land is not registered it wasn't easy to clarify, and we are trying to confirm that."
County and Rushcliffe borough councillor for the area, Councillor Gordon Wheeler, said he had seen the sign claiming Mr Geary owns the land.
He said: "It's a piece of land I've queried before about ownership when I was trying to get it maintained.
"The borough council, county council and city council all said it was nothing to do with them.
"Possibly Mr Geary put up the sign in the absence of any ownership and claimed a right to it."
An Environment Agency spokeswoman said: "Our Asset Performance Team investigated a claim that an unauthorised mooring is taking place on the River Trent near Wilford Lane.
"We have advised the person responsible to stop the work until land drainage consent is approved.
"He has also been advised to contact the local authority for advice on whether additional planning approvals are required.
"The role of the Environment Agency is to determine land drainage consent for riverside structures.
"Consent is required so we can assess the suitability of riverside structures in terms of engineering, location, ecological impact and potential flood risk in that area.
"Land ownership in this case is not the responsibility of the Environment Agency."
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