£1.7 million holiday park extension promises jobs boost (From Gazette & Herald)

£1.7 million extension plan at Wayside Holiday Park, Wrelton, near Pickering

11:17am Wednesday 24th October 2012 in News By Trevor Hayes

LOCAL contractors and job seekers stand to benefit from a £1.7 million expansion plan at a holiday park at Wrelton, near Pickering.

Plans to expand the Wayside Holiday Park with an extra 38 static holiday units were given the thumbs-up by Ryedale District Council’s planning committee at its meeting last week.

The park already has 113 static holiday units and spaces for 41 touring caravans but the company had applied to change the use of adjacent farmland to form an extension to the existing holiday park.

The plans also include parking spaces as well as two lakes, landscaping and an adjacent wildlife area with a pond.

Stephen Bean, of Stone and Bean Associates, speaking on behalf of the applicants, said it was a successful business which wanted to expand as it had now reached its limit.

A full public consultation was carried out in the village hall and some of the comments influenced the proposed design.

He told the committee: “The expansion will bring a lot of new business.”

Up to £600,000 would be spent with local builders and contractors to carry out work such as building a new road and landscaping while about £1.1 million would be spent on buying the extra accommodation, again involving Yorkshire firms.

“It will bring a lot of prosperity and growth into the area and provide two new full-time jobs and one part-time job recruited locally and the maintenance contracts will also be bought locally,” said Mr Bean.

He added: “The holidaymakers will bring spending money to the local shops so we feel this proposal is positive.”

The parish council and four residents had objected to the application expressing concern about the impact on the character of the village and on the existing sewerage, as well as on the open countryside.

But Gary Housden, the council’s head of planning, described it as as a “well-considered scheme.”

Coun Lindsay Burr, (Lib Dem) who runs her own businesses, said: “These places are becoming increasingly popular, especially in these economic times and Ryedale thrives on such businesses.

“I like the fact they have consulted and listened to people’s opinions.”

A report to the committee from planning officials said the existing service road within the site would be continued into the new development and would be constructed using locally-sourced crushed stone.

It also outlined how the holiday park had grown since 1975 when it accommodated 80 static caravans and 40 touring caravan pitches as well as spaces for tents.

The report concluded: “This proposal would support the expansion and growth of a successful local business and would provide benefits to the wider local economy.”

The committee unanimously approved the recommendation from officials that it should go ahead.