PARK TOLD TO END FOUR RIDES AT END OF SUMMER
Rides which were built at a Devon attraction without planning permission could face demolition.
East Devon District Council’s development control committee met to discuss the fate of the four rides at Crealy Great Adventure Park, at Clyst St Mary, which were constructed without planning permission on land not officially deemed acceptable for use as an amusement park.
Councillors decided that cessation notices will be served on the park ordering it to stop using the Queen Bess Pirate Ship, Tractor Yard, Prince’s Train Track and the El Pastil rollercoaster on September 1.
The orders mean the rides must be dismantled 12 months after that date unless retrospective applications are accepted.
In the same meeting the park’s £7.5 million project for 30 five-star eco-lodges was given approval subject to the agreement of an amended scheme which uses a smaller area of land and a legal agreement limiting the occupation of the lodges to holiday use.
Angela Wright, managing director of Crealy, said: “The council is working with us to resolve any outstanding issues with the rides and we are confident that we can get this all agreed this summer.
“We are waiting for the council to tell us what to do.”
Mrs Wright claimed East Devon District Council confirmed in 2000 and 2003 the park did not need planning permission for its rides due to its status as an amusement park but it had recently reached a different view.
She said the park would work with the council to resolve all the issues and also said she was pleased the application for the eco-lodges had been approved.
“We have been working with all parties for the last four years and it has been really worthwhile as the plans have evolved over that time,” she added.
A spokesperson from East Devon District Council said: “The small scale of the Tractor Yard and Prince’s Train Track rides means the rides themselves do not cause concern.
“However, if no enforcement action was taken it would establish the use of the land on which they stand as an amusement park on which other major attractions could be constructed without needing planning permission.”
With regard to the eco-lodges, the spokesperson said members considered the need for Crealy to diversify as a business.
