Pleasure Island development has Environment Agency objection withdrawn

Pleasure Island, Cleethorpes
The Pleasure Island site, in Cleethorpes, could be redeveloped (file photo) -Credit:Donna Clifford


There is no longer a key stumbling block on the redevelopment of Cleethorpes' Pleasure Island site as the Environment Agency has withdrawn its objection.

The proposed major mixed-used development of the former theme park site includes two hotels, 272 holiday lodges, a Lidl supermarket, another retail unit, and a leisure unit, restaurants and cafés.

The Environment Agency had issued a holding objection on the development, seeking more measurement detail on flood risk to holiday lodge areas. There was also concern on flood risk grounds to all-year occupancy of Lodge area A, which has a designated 59 lodges, ornamental lake, and play area.

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The flood management body withdrew its objection at the beginning of May. Despite a technical note, it maintained a holding objection last August, wanting more detail on flood risk and evacuation plans. However, a meeting was held on August 22 between the Environment Agency and the consortium behind the development. A spokesperson for the developers expressed shortly after that the meeting had been successful in paving the way for the objection to be withdrawn.

Nine months on, it has been. Previous plans for all-year occupancy of Lodge area A were shelved in February during the to-ing and fro-ing of additional application comment submissions. If approved, the lodges are intended to be 1950s style and be a mixture of privately owned and ones kept by the developers to be rented out.

A Natural England objection remains while awaiting more information on impacts on nearby protected nature sites, such as Ramsar, and proposed mitigations. The application for the scheme was originally made in late 2022.

Because of the number of residents who have opposed it, the scheme will have to be decided on by North East Lincolnshire Council's planning committee. The next scheduled meeting of the committee is June 12.

There are a significant number of supportive comments as well as objections by residents. Application documents estimate it could raise £16.9m more visitor expenditure per year locally, and create 447 full-time equivalent jobs, directly or indirectly.