Snug Architects was recently tapped to rebuild a row of beach huts in Milford-on-Sea that had been destroyed by a storm on Valentine’s Day 2014. But instead of just rebuilding the beach huts, architect Paul Bulkeley and his team and partners at engineering firm Ramboll created a new seawall and a formidable defense for a vulnerable town.

The storm that hit the South England coast on Valentine’s night in 2014 was shown on television for nearly a week: the waterlogged cars and houses, concrete pillars that had been tossed into the air like matchsticks. The entire sea defense in certain areas had been smashed, and open water flowed into the previously sheltered town.

It was this kind of once-in-200-years storm, Paul tells us, that the new beach huts had to withstand. They weren’t just a place for people to change clothes; they were literally what will be standing between the rising tide and the town when another storm hits.

The huts are lined up along a wall, underneath a new promenade created with incredibly strong in situ and pre-cast concrete. In order to enhance the storm resistance and improve the performance for users, they moved the huts further away from the sea.

Satisfying all the stakeholders on the project proved a delicate balance. The project is partly funded by the local council, New Forest District Council, and the beach hut owners. The visitors to the beach also needed the new beach huts to work for them. The architects’ approach was to use a process of public engagement and meetings with stakeholders to promote a solution where everyone comes out a winner.

The result is civil engineering infrastructure you can inhabit. It provided a sea wall, beach huts and a new promenade, three in one. The project is now on-site and is due for completion by next summer.