 It was only after he had threatened to build his own a short distance away that the council relented and he obtained a 99-year lease on the site.With a handful of local workers and some second hand construction machinery he spent two years, living in a caravan on site, making the terminal better able to withstand the swell and weather conditions experienced.This involved the construction of a pier, incorporating the "dolphins" (freestanding structures a vessel lies against) constructed by the previous operators, together with some dredging work.