A FRESH vision has been unveiled for a controversial £30m Flamingo Land holiday resort on the shores of Balloch which prompted a Save Loch Lomond campaign.
Developers have submitted a new masterplan for the project, renamed Lomond Banks and formerly submitted to Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park which features a water park, 60-bedroom apart-hotel, a craft brewery, boat house, leisure centre and restaurants.
The development also outside activity areas including a tree top walk, events and performance areas, children’s play areas a monorail, forest adventure rides and picnic and play areas.
READ MORE: More than 20000 back 'Save Loch Lomond' campaign over Flamingo Land project
It also features 32-bedroom budget accommodation, 131 self-catering units, six private houses and 15 apartments.
The developers, Iconic Leisure Developments hope to complete the project in 2024 and say they expect as many as 80 full time jobs, 50 part-time jobs and to 70 seasonal posts to the area.
"First look" artists impressions of the development have emerged after nearly 40,000 backed a petition objecting to the project by Iconic Leisure, the firm behind the Flamingo Land theme park of rollercoasters, water rides and flumes in North Yorkshire. The petition portal was set up by Scottish Green MSP Ross Greer.
The portal support is in addition to over 1000 who have already lodged their opposition.
The campaigners are concerned that a large chunk of Loch Lomond is to be handed over for the project fronted by Iconic Leisure Developments "for the sake of a high-end tourist resort".
But Iconic say Lomond Banks will be a "world class family holiday village" ensuring more people can experience everything the area has to offer "in line with the vision that has been held by development agencies and the local authority since the early 1990s".
Iconic was selected as the "preferred developer" after a national marketing campaign for a 44-acre site by Scottish Enterprise. That gave the company exclusivity over the area to undertake site investigations such as geotechnical, ecology, flood risk, utilities and access studies.
The Scottish-owned company has said it hopes to build on the existing success of Loch Lomond Shores which has seen visitor levels steadily increase to 1.25 million visitors annually.
The firm said: "The vision will bring new life to the site’s extensive industrial past through improving biodiversity and providing active leisure activities, restaurants and retail, as well as private housing and holiday accommodation.
"Crucially, the masterplan balances protecting the natural woodland setting that is essential to the overall character of the development and the local area, while creating a successful visitor destination that attracts families for days out, holidays and short-breaks."
Alannah Maurer of Save Loch Lomond say there remain fundamental concerns about the project.
"The development remains far too large for the town of Balloch and is being built on what is a huge slice of what is globally renowned real estate that is public land," she said. Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park says the masterplan amounts to changes to the original project and involves alterations to the extent of the Pierhead development which aims to avoid the building of any structures within the River Leven floodplain.
It comes after the plans had been "paused" since August as more information had been requested from the applicants.
The main changes involve converting and extending Woodbank House to form 15 residential flats.
It also involves cutting the number of proposed houses within the grounds of Woodbank House from 20 to 6 while increasing the number of proposed lodges/bothies from 28 to 50.
Iconic also wants to change the use of a proposed boathouse on the promontory at Drumkinnon from self-catering to a storage and water based recreation.
"We are now in the process of re-consultation with the relevant statutory consultees and anyone who has already submitted a representation to the application has been informed," the authority said.
Cameron McNeish, the Scottish hiker and backpacker who has written books, newspaper columns and television broadcasts, is among those who have already voiced their objection, branding the plans “a potentially disastrous agreement”. And Eddi Reader is also opposed.
Campaigners were concerned about the damage to ancient woodland, pollution of standing and running water and the effect on red squirrels and otters.
An environmental statement from TSL Contractors, carrying out an impact assessment says the design masterplan has embraced the woodland habitats of the site as "an asset within the developer’s vision for the site as a recreational woodland offering opportunity for an increase in leisure and tourism provision in the area".
"The retention and management of woodlands therefore is intrinsic to the development and its design," they said.
Andy Miller, director at Lomond Banks, said: “As you can see from our artist impressions, we are fully committed to seeing Balloch become the true gateway to Loch Lomond.
“Our plans for West Riverside and Woodbank House offer an opportunity for a unique leisure based development and with Lomond Banks, Scotland will have a quality destination that respects and compliments the surrounding area.
“We know that our vision for the area will add tangible value to the community and to the rest of Scotland for the next 40 years and beyond.”
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