A proposed new 13-lodge holiday park near Northallerton is set for approval despite concerns it will lead to a much bigger development in the future
Members of North Yorkshire Council will be asked to decide on plans for the holiday lodges and a warden’s lodge on a field off Moor Lane, Thornton-le-beans, next week.
Councillors have been recommended by officers to approve the plan, despite numerous concerns being raised by local residents during four consultation exercises which have taken place since December 2023.
Among the objectors is Thornton-le-Beans and Crosby with Cotcliffe Parish Council which submitted a 16-page report in its latest correspondence with council planners.
The parish council said the development was unsuitable for the proposed location and listed a number of reasons why it believed this was the case, ranging from a lack of facilities in the village to light pollution, and the loss of agricultural land.
It added: “The type of business proposed requires a tranquil countryside location if it is to match up to its advertising rhetoric, however, this proposal sites some lodges within 200m of the busy A168 with its noise, light pollution from headlights and traffic fumes, and others less than 100m of the packaged sewage treatment plant.
“There are many other more conveniently situated locations, many within the national parks, which provide a more immersive holiday experience, nearer to a wider range of facilities and attractions and much better served by public transport.”
The parish council has questioned whether the business would be viable with the proposed number of lodges and has called for the applicant to submit a detailed business plan, adding: “If the applicants fail to deliver any convincing explanation of how their venture will succeed without any further expansion of whatever ilk, you must surely conclude that the application before us is an ill-concealed attempt to salami slice what they were advised in the preplanning meeting to be an inappropriately large scheme.”
The planning department has received around a dozen responses in support of the scheme from local residents but more than 100 objections.
But planning officer Marc Pearson said in his report that the proposal did comply with planning policies.
He added: “The economic benefit to Thornton-le-Beans and Northallerton is clear – the proximity of the site means that it is likely that any tourists using the site would use the facilities available there, contributing directly to the local economy.
“Furthermore, the landscaping (including biodiversity net gain) can also be considered to be environmental benefits. The social benefits of the scheme are less clear, but there are no perceived negatives introduced into the area through the scheme which could not then be managed through the imposition of conditions.”
Councillors on the Thirsk and Malton area planning committee will meet on Thursday to discuss the scheme.
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