A controversial proposal to to build a 400-lodge luxury resort on over 70 hectares of agricultural land on the outskirts of Newquay has been approved despite a huge amount of opposition, writes Local Democracy Reporter Lee Trewhela.
Kingsley Leisure Developments were given approval by a Cornwall Council strategic planning committee today (Thursday, November 21) to build the Green Ridge Resort on land near Colan and Quintrell Downs. Around 250 of the properties will be for sale as holiday homes.
The sustainable woodland resort aims to create a new type of holiday destination in Cornwall and will include a swimming pool, spa, indoor activity centre, food and beverage outlets, and outdoor activities including a water park, splash park, playground, dog walking trail, walking trails and seasonal outdoor events areas. There would also be a series of permanent lakes.
Around 350 people objected to the proposal on the council’s online planning portal as has MP Noah Law, a Newquay GP surgery and Colan Parish Council.
A number of speakers spoke both for and against the plans during a two-and-a-half-hour debate at County Hall / Lys Kernow in Truro.
Jonathan Lambe, of Lambe Planning and Design, was speaking on behalf of local objectors. He said: “This will result in an unacceptable impact on the landscape, heritage assets, ecology and local community.”
Mr Lambe added: “The economic benefits claimed are not achievable as these holiday homes would not have a constant turnover of weekly lets. It is likely they’d only be occupied for short weekend breaks and during school holidays. Visit Cornwall has severe concerns, stating that the local market was already largely saturated.
“Support should be given to existing holiday parks to upgrade and restructure, and not the creation of a vast new holiday park in the open countryside. This proposal will undermine the existing holiday parks and lead to saturisation and cannibalisation through business displacement.
“This proposal will have a catastrophic impact on the landscape, overwhelm local amenities, shatter peace and tranquillity, and destroy the very reason holidaymakers visit this area.”
Another opponent, James Hammerlsey, assistant head teacher at Newquay Tretherras school, said: “This proposal fails to met the basic tenets of the planning framework. Negative impacts on residents will be significant, it will not enhance or protect existing environments, there is not demand or need for this development and it goes against the government’s remit to build and develop on brownfield rather than greenfield sites.
“This plan creates the wrong type of job – low skill and seasonal. We need to stop the brain and skills drain and keep the talent in Cornwall. Green Ridge will not provide the jobs our children need. No kid has come to me saying they want to be a cleaner in the future.”
Colan parish councillor Kerry Martin said the proposal has sparked overwhelming community opposition. “Quintrell Downs is already under immense pressure from the ongoing Nansledan development, which has ten years of construction remaining. This has caused significant congestion with residents facing hour-long traffic delays during peak tourist season just to travel one mile.
“The developer’s claims about minimal traffic impact on the village roundabout do not align with our local experience.” She added that a proposed construction access road raised additional concerns as it’s a route used daily by children catching a school bus.
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Cllr Martin said she had consulted local farmers who had stressed how vital the farmland on the site is, not just for food production but for their livelihoods and the local economy. “Destroying 71 hectares of productive farmland for a luxury resort is not only environmentally reckless but also a permanent blow to our food security.”
She added that healthcare capacity was another major point, with people in the area having to wait up to five weeks for a GP appointment. “This would further overwhelm an already stretched system.
“The Green Ridge Resort will devastate our community by worsening traffic congestion, overburdening healthcare services, destroying farmland and harming our natural environment.”
Martin Pollard, for the applicant, said: “The Green Ridge Resort is based on a proven format and similar schemes in other parts of the UK have delivered high quality tourism development with a high year-round occupancy supporting well-paid permanent jobs. The scheme has been fully endorsed by Hoseasons, the UK’s market leading provider of holiday accommodation.”
He said the scheme would be of massive benefit to the Cornish economy, creating 97 permanent full-time, 113 part-time jobs, 111 seasonal roles and hundreds more jobs through secondary employment. “It represents a £60m capital investment and adds over £26m per year to the local economy.” Mr Pollard added that the 250 properties for sale would aid the process of alleviating Cornwall’s housing crisis by providing alternative non-residential holiday accommodation.
Stephen Twiss, a non-executive director of Kingsley Leisure Developments, said a similar resort in Devon has been very successful, reporting 100 per cent occupancy out of season in October. He said sustainability was at the heart of the Green Ridge project.
Local member Cllr John Fitter, who brought the application to committee, said the resort would be situated within the “green lungs of the parish” on land that is farmed “in the interest of the nation and plays an important contribution”, adding: “The community of Colan parish are not anti-development. They welcome development where there is a proven need, but this application has brought a barrage of criticism based upon genuine planning reasons as to why this application should be refused.”
Cornwall Council’s portfolio holder for housing Olly Monk, who is also a Newquay councillor, told the meeting: “This is clearly a very contentious development. I think there are a lot of pros among the cons. I think it’s very important that we look to build sustainable, 21st century tourist accommodation, so tourists have a different offer so people don’t stay in Airbnbs in the area.”
Cllr Rob Nolan said holiday accommodation needs are changing so he thought there was a call for such a resort, but he could understand local people’s concerns due to its huge scale. “They say it will take the second homes and holiday lets out of surrounding villages, but that’s theory.”
During debate some councillors raised doubts about the project based on many of the concerns raised during the meeting, but many were torn as they said it would provide a new form of tourism, provide jobs and has the possibility of helping the housing situation. On balance, they ended up supporting the Green Ridge Resort scheme, with five votes in favour and four against.
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