St. Mary's Island is done. What's it like to live there?

As it reaches completion after 27 years, we talk to residents to get a sense of what goes on over the bridge

St. Mary’s Island is one of the success stories of Medway regeneration. An entire new community developed on former Chatham Dockyard land. To say it has been a long journey is something of an understatement. Following the dockyard's closure in 1984, work began on the site in 1997 and finally reached completion this year with around 1,700 homes built.

Earlier this month, at an event to celebrate the completion of work, a somewhat startling statistic was cited: Over a third of homes sold in the island's final phase were being sold to people moving from another part of the island. At a time when new builds have a reputation of attracting ‘down from Londons’ into our communities, what is it about this little corner of Medway that makes people want to stick around? Can it really be some kind of island utopia?

The main bridge to St. Mary’s Island. Photo: Francesca Dorsa / Local Authority

I’m one of the island dwellers. My partner and I moved here a couple of years ago when another property we’d committed to fell through. I was a little sceptical of the place at first. My younger self believed it would be an awful place to live. There’s nothing there! You’re miles away from anything! I also had a little snobbery about the sort of person who would want to live somewhere like St. Mary’s Island. I’d always wanted to be in the heart of things. I loved living in the centre of Rochester and having events and coffee shops on my doorstep. So moving to a sleepy island removed from almost any useful facilities or things to do never used to hold much appeal.

Then we moved here and quickly became assimilated. That younger version of myself would have hated how quiet it is, but it’s a selling point now. Our flat is away from passing traffic, and despite living on a main footpath, disturbance is minimal. After a while, I started to find little gems, like the lovely Cafe Bueno by the bridge or my incredible barber, who I’ve written about previously. There’s a Coop just over the bridge, a cinema and restaurants in walking distance, and some lovely paths to explore around the island. Even now, two years after moving here, we walk down to the river and express amazement that we get to live in these surroundings.

St. Mary’s Island. Photo: Francesca Dorsa / Local Authority

That isn’t to say that the island is perfect. A lack of meaningful public transport makes it difficult to function here without a car. Because of that, parking can be a bit of a nightmare in certain parts, with cars littering pavements. The local Facebook groups can go into overdrive if anyone dares to look slightly suspicious anywhere on the island. But overall, it’s hard not to conclude that it’s a pleasant place to live.

I’m just one person, though, and we all have different wants and expectations from the places we live. So, for this piece, I’ve spoken to three people who call the island home to find out about the good, the bad, and the downright weird parts of island living.

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Amy (not her real name) came to St. Mary’s Island to get on the property ladder. She had previously rented in Rochester and wanted to make that next step, and compared to the historic town, the island presented more affordable opportunities.

One of the biggest positives for her is how safe it feels. “Living solo, I feel very safe here walking around, even after dark, which isn't the case everywhere I go in Medway. I also appreciate nowhere is 100% safe, but here feels as good as it's ever going to get.” It’s a common theme when talking about St. Mary’s Island. While many places, particularly around our town centres, can feel intimidating during the evening, there seem to be few concerns about wandering the island.

Of course, there are the standards, too: the river walks, the proximity to Dockside and the Medway Tunnel, and plenty of dogs to admire. Her flat overlooks the basin used for watersports, giving a great view for events like the annual Chatham Maritime Food and Drink Festival and dragon boat racing.

St. Mary’s Island and one of the basins. Photo: Francesca Dorsa / Local Authority

That doesn’t mean everything is perfect, though, as she found herself living with some unexpected flatmates a few years ago. “I had some mice move into my second-floor flat just as the first lockdown has eased. That was rather unexpected, being a fair distance from the ground, but the mouse man said the flat design was conducive for adventurous rodents to climb pipes.” That hasn’t been the only issue with the build quality of her block, either. “My flat feels quite flimsy with no soundproofing, and you can hear a lot of what is going on in the other flats, which can make you feel a bit of an unintentional voyeur,” she notes, adding, “I am very grateful for my noise cancelling headphones!”

While she describes a lot of the people living around her as nice, she does feel “there can be a Little England mentality at times,” remembering there were “a fair few unhappy people during lockdown when the council advertised the island as a great place for walking, running and cycling.” Similarly, users of the many Facebook groups that exist thanks to the Great Parking Permit Schism of 2018 can often complain that the island isn’t as good as it used to be or lament the permanent on-site security that used to exist on the site.

Amy recalls a maintenance worker who told her that despite the safe feeling of the island, most police visits to the island are call-outs to domestic violence incidents. It’s hard to verify this exactly, but the crime maps for the area nod to the fact there might at least be some truth in it. Of the 35 police incidents on the island in the past three months, 20 were for violent or sexual offences.

Beyond thinking it was “a bit chi-chi or bougie”, Amy didn’t have much of a perception of the island before moving on to it. “To be honest, I was just grateful for the chance to get on the property ladder that I didn't give it much more thought.”