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Plans for new £300m leisure complex in Blackpool with three theme parks given go ahead
Blackpool Pleasure Beach bosses have opposed the plans, saying they will ‘threaten the existence’ of the park
An ambitious £300m leisure complex plan for Blackpool Central has this week been given the go-ahead by the council.
According to the BBC, councillors have backed plans to create a heritage quarter on Central Drive in Blackpool including three indoor theme parks, an artisan food hall, boutique holiday apartments and an outdoor entertainment space.
Other plans include converting the Grade II-listed former King Edward VII Cinema into a food hall with outdoor dining areas, refurbishing the locally-listed King Edward VII pub and turning the King Edward VII apartment building into a hotel.
Nikal Ltd
A 1,306 space seven-storey car park – which will be the first part of the scheme completed by developers Nikal Ltd and Media Invest Entertainment – has also been approved.
Richard Fee, chief executive of Nikal, said on the ambitious project: “This is a key moment for levelling up Blackpool’s visitor economy post Covid. Blackpool Central will help transform and future-proof the town’s tourism offer, and last night’s approval is an important step forward in our journey.”
However, not everyone is too keen on the idea of more theme parks along Blackpool’s promenade; Blackpool Pleasure Beach, Blackpool’s massively popular sea-front theme park, has objected to the plans, saying three new theme parks will ‘undermine’ its tourism offer.
Nick Laister, representing the park, said there would be nothing to stop the developers installing mechanical rides rather than delivering a unique new experience for Blackpool visitors.
He said: “You are being asked to approve another theme park in Blackpool which will directly undermine Blackpool Pleasure Beach which is a major resort core attraction.”
However, committee chairman Councillor David Owen said he doesn’t believe Blackpool Central would ‘be any significant competition’ to the Pleasure Beach, saying, as per the Blackpool Gazette: “I honestly think the Pleasure Beach has always been the major attraction in Blackpool. It always has been since it started, it has always replenished itself.”
The leisure complex is predicted to be fully complete in ten years time, with work starting next year in 2022.