WORK is proposed to repair and carry out basic improvements to possibly the best surviving example of an historic boat building yard.
The application for listed building consent has been made by British Waterways at Taylor's Boatyard on Whipcord Lane, Chester.
In its commercial heyday, the boatyard, now grade two listed, employed more than 200 people.
Parts of the yard date from the 1840s.
It includes a slipway shed, a smithy, a carpenter's shop, a saw mill and a dry dock.
Chester based conservation specialists Donald Insall Associates have carried out a survey of the site and its buildings and have produced a schedule of repairs.
British Waterways says it wishes to save the historic fabric and where possible improve facilities for the future use of the boatyard.
The work is said to be the minimum which is needed to reverse the long term decline in its fabric and to meet modern workplace standards.
The work would be carried out over time, subject to available funding and the needs of British Waterways, prospective tenants and other interested parties.
While most repair works would be carried out on a like-for-like basis, in some instances modern materials would be used where this would be a benefit.
Conservation officers at Cheshire West and Chester Council describe the scheme as "exemplary" while the Chester Canal Heritage Trust says it is delighted at the prospect of work being carried out.
The yard has been known as Taylor's Boatyard since it was bought by Joseph 'Harry' Taylor in the 1920s.
The family owned and ran the yard until 1972.
