Developers touring the Frontierland site told 'leisure and hospitality scheme' is a must

Friday, 4 October 2024 12:17

By Greg Lambert @greglam72

The Frontierland site in Morecame pictured earlier this year

Would-be developers touring the Frontierland site in Morecambe have been told that a 'leisure and hospitality-led' scheme is key to its future.

Potential developers were invited to a 'Morecambe Investment Tour' at the Winter Gardens on Thursday, followed by a look around the former fairground land.

Lancaster City Council co-hosted the event hoping to find a partner to help them develop the former funfair on Morecambe's seafront, which has been mainly derelict for the best part of 25 years.

Lizzi Collinge, MP for Morecambe and Lunesdale, attended, as did representatives of the city council, Morecambe Town Council, Morecambe BID (Business Improvement District), Lancaster and Morecambe Chamber of Commerce, Lancashire County Council, the Eden Partnership Board, the Frontierland Project Board, and Professor Vanessa Toulmin, chair of the Winter Gardens Preservation Trust.

Councillor Phillip Black, leader of the city council (below), was among those to give speeches at the event. Photo credit: Simon Das.

Developers were also told about plans for the new Eden Project Morecambe, and were taken to have a look at the proposed site of the new £100m visitor attraction on the Promenade.

Simon Das, from Lancaster-based 978 Group, was one of the local developers who attended. He said the redevelopment would be a "massive project" and he would be looking to work with partners should he become involved in any regeneration scheme.

Mr Das (pictured below) said it was a "good positive day", there were around 50 people there in total, and quite a lot of regional and national interest in developing the land.

He also said "one or two developers clearly didn't get the memo about the council not wanting residential housing" but "the majority were there for the right reasons" as the council said they were looking for a leisure/hospitality-led scheme.

Mr Das said there was a networking and discussion session where "people were coming up with ideas for the site but also holding their cards close to their chest".

He said Lancaster City Council were very welcoming and seemed open to "local people becoming part of a consortium to help deliver it".

Mr Das said developers were told they would now receive a post-event questionnaire to complete and a short-list of potential developers would be created in "quite a structured process".

Councillor Caroline Jackson, deputy leader of Lancaster City Council, said: “We already know that Morecambe is a special place but over the next few years we will see the town really begin to blossom.

“Key to it all will be building strong partnerships and working with investors to create a thriving seaside resort fit for the 21st century.

“Frontierland is an excellent investment opportunity and by inviting along these investors to see the site and the town for themselves we were able to showcase its potential.”

Last November, the city council, who own the Frontierland site, published a list of 'draft objectives' for the land on Marine Road West.

The number one objective was a leisure-led redevelopment, which may also include hotels and/or apartments, public spaces for events and festivals, and only a "modest amount" of shops, with minimal housing only as a last resort if needed to financially support the other objectives.

A public consultation took place earlier this year on the objectives.

The Wild West theme park closed in 2000.