Coxside is a small settlement with lots of businesses and a community that knows each other, it's a friendly place where neighbours chat and catch up in passing. Even in the depths of winter, the morning sound of bird song is something to be noted when during the early hours, before first light, robins and blackbirds sing beautifully in the surrounding trees, before most people are awake. Coxside has a cosy feel with so many living there and calling it home, there's a strong sense of community in this coastal quarter.
Home to Plymouth Fisheries, a handful of pubs and even a Premier Inn hotel, the area is loved by locals and, in more recent times, popular with summer visitors. Queen Anne's Battery is situated in the heat of the area, it has more than 200 berths for boats and is a popular base for yachts, however, many locals that have lived in Coxside through the times fondly remember it as 'the Battery' as it was once an 'unspoilt' clearing where locals would swim.
These days there are an array of different businesses and community hubs in the area, with several houses, flats and even a few holiday homes including the luxurious seaside mansion holiday-let, Victoria House, just up the road in Cattedown. Rumour has it that well-known pub The Eagle Tavern, that has recently sold, may become an Airbnb. Recent times have seen interest in the area for holiday homes such as Airbnb, however this neighbourhood, fringed by the sea, remains primarily a community where locals enjoy living.
One popular destination in Coxside where locals and visitors alike enjoy a good breakfast or lunch is The New East End Cafe. On the corner of Commercial place and Commercial Road sits this little gem of a diner and takeaway and there's been a cafe on the same spot since most can remember. As well as running the premises, husband and wife business partners Luke and Michelle Pascoe also prepare and deliver buffets for events and parties as well as taking online food orders for home delivery. Even on December 27, that strange in-between week after Christmas and before New Year, the New East End Cafe was bustling. With new additions on the menu including gourmet burgers and vegetarian options too for eating in ordering take-out, the cafe is a popular choice and highly rated in reviews on delivery website JustEat. Monthly specials are also featured, December's special was festive baguettes. East End Cafe is a family-run restaurant, Luke's dad Mark also works there, he used to be a fisherman. There are nine members of staff working at the cafe.
Luke says: "We've managed to keep our prices low despite the cost of living crisis, we're still very competitive. We've made a few adjustments in the kitchen adding more eco-friendly appliances which is helping keeping costs down."
Just around the corner from Luke and Michelle's cafe is the well-known Prime Skatepark, attracting more than 300 visitors each week. Prime Skatepark is a charity organisation, converted around two years ago, though the site has been in place for more than 14 years. There's also a shop on site with all things skater associated on offer and a coffee shack selling hot drinks with plenty of milk choices.
John Knight, trustee, manages the running of Prime Skatepark. He says: "We do lessons here, teach people to skate and one of the things we're trying to do into the new year is we're trying to build up the community side of the skatepark so even if you're not a skateboarder you can come down here and hang out."
BMXing, roller-skating and scootering are also popular activities at Prime. Nick Marker is chief executive and founded Prime in 2009, he set up the skatepark to 'provide kids with something he didn't have in his time, somewhere for young people to go and also assist the community spirit'. Nick teaches skating and says the main catchment age of visitors is teens to early 20s, however, Nick says: "All ages get involved, I taught a 70 year old to 'drop in' last week."
"Though we generally cover Devon and Cornwall, people visit us from all over the UK, being in Coxside is great as we're close to other leisure type destinations and it's still close to town so people can visit us easily. We're opening up a cafe space soon, we're calling it the social space, that's what is going to be. We'll be licensing the premises to include once a month sessions such as live bands into 2023. We're planning an open fire wood burner in what we call the barn in the cafe extension. It's a real sun trap here in the summer too. We want to make this place a social area for everyone.
"We're adapting to slower trading periods as no-one's got much disposable income at the moment. We're looking at other ways we can use this space to assist the community while keeping trade strong. There'll be more workshops happening, for local kids and young people. This is a safe haven for young people, we look after up to 500 visitors, each week here at Prime. We service all the skateboards here as well.
"The cafe should be in full swing by February 2023. The parents like to come and hang out too, that's the idea behind the cafe. Parents, kids and young people can all enjoy the space here, We love our customers at Prime.
"There's going to be art workshops and seasonal art projects too. There's a Skate furniture building workshop in January 23, other organisations such as Skate to the Max come in to do workshops."
Prime skatepark, in conjunction with other projects have an ongoing project in plympton>Plymouth City centre where the area around the Civic Centre has been enlivened with colour and art.
Nearby, another business is expanding in Coxside. Macpherson Motorcycles has been trading since June 2019 and has recently moved to a new location opposite New East End Cafe. On the new premises owner Chris Macpherson has incorporated other exciting additions providing MOTs, motorbike servicing, diagnostic work and an in-house dyno machine on site.
Officially opening next week, there’s now a motorcycle workshop, motorcycle sales, barber shop, tattoo studio and cafe all on site at the new location. The interior looks fantastic with artwork, biker clothing for sale and a cool, modern vibe. Chris recently posted on the Facebook page: "We are excited to announce we will be opening the cafe and showroom to the public on Tuesday January 3. We’d like to thank our loyal customers and friends for all your support, we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you!"
Another well-known face in Coxside is Bill Crossman, Rigger for Gael Force Marine, based in Plymouth Fisheries. Bill used to be a fisherman and still fishes in his spare time. Over the years Bill has taken and collected photos of his life at sea, the boats and people he’s met along the way, these memories are displayed on a wall in his workspace. Bill explains a little what being a rigger entails:
"I’ve been working and rigging on the quay now for about 30 years and still like doing it. Rigging involves making warps, bridles and footropes plus rubber legs which all attach to the bridles and warps. It also involves me replacing broken gear and splicing new eyes in wire or combination. It’s a great job, the people I deal with are brilliant, they give me the gear to mend knowing it will be done when they come to collect it, which needs to be as fast as possible because they need to get back fishing. I'm always more than happy to repair or replace any gear given to me to do."
Plymouth fisheries has been based at Fish Quay, Coxside since 1995, with a daily early morning auction where fish merchants and restaurants purchase fresh fish, this mainly takes place online. The fish market is open to the public, several units sell fresh fish directly to customers from the fisheries site.
What are your memories of Coxside? Share them with us in the comments.
