Plans lodged for North Yorkshire eco lodge resort

Plans have been lodged for a new job-creating eco lodge resort on the site of a disused golf course in North Yorkshire.Flaxby Park Ltd, supported by Lichfields and Pod, has submitted an application to Harrogate Borough Council for development at the proposed Flaxby Leisure Park site.The site comprises about 280 acres of land at the former Flaxby Park Golf and Country Club and land to the north of old York Road in Flaxby.Outline planning permission is sought for the demolition of the existing buildings and redevelopment of the site as an eco lodge resort.The plans include 400 lodges and a 30-bedroom hotel featuring a spa, swimming pool and indoor leisure facilities.A village centre would be created comprising about 14,400 sq ft for a pub and restaurant, farm shop and cafe, gift shop, activity hub and wine house.The application also includes open and play space, including up to 215,000 sq ft of sport and leisure facilities, as well as landscaping, roads, and pedestrian and cycle facilities.It has been estimated that he development would result in a total capital investment of £97m and support 460 full-time equivalent jobs during construction.Once complete, it could support the creation of a net 99 full time equivalent jobs and attract an estimated 310,500 net additional visitors per annum, generating an annual increase in visitor expenditure of £16.3m.Proposals for a development of 2,750 homes, a new village centre, two primary schools, sports facilities and a new railway station on a wider site were refused planning permission last year.The 430-acre site near Knaresborough was acquired in 2016 by Flaxby Park Ltd, owned by Stagecoach co-founder Ann Gloag and regeneration experts Chris Musgrave and Trevor Cartner.