A THEME park operator has said a £30m leisure resort at Loch Lomond will be abandoned if the majority in Scotland oppose the move.
The operator of Flamingo Land in North Yorkshire which plans to develop a 20-hectare site at West Riverside in Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park has said judging the proposals is premature, as an online petition claims to have attracted over 20,000 signatures.
The developer, which operates one of the UK's most successful holiday resorts, hopes to introduce lodges, boutique hotel, hostel and glamping pods to the site, alongside a range of family attractions and restaurants.
Read more: Conservationists criticise Trump-style sand dune golf course plan
Gordon Gibb, Flamingo Land chief executive, reportedly said the firm "totally understands some of the local concerns about our proposed leisure resort in Balloch and we are committed to engaging with all parties involved to fully explain our ideas".
He said: "We would like to point out that the planning process has not even commenced yet and our proposals are concentrated on residential holidays and not creating a theme park as some publications have suggested.
"Our bid was successful due to the sensitive way in which we have considered the site in question and we look forward to continuing to cooperate with the consultation group."
He questioned the petition and said "it's also worth making the point that it is very easy to orchestrate any campaign by manipulating social media".
He said: "To be frank, if our plans are not welcomed by most of the people in Scotland then we will not proceed further but I do not trust the results of the petition and we have not yet been given the chance to fully explain our plans."
Read more: Conservationists criticise Trump-style sand dune golf course plan
The Scottish-owned company hopes to build on the existing success of Loch Lomond Shores which has seen visitor levels steadily increase over the last five years to 1.25 million visitors annually.
Scottish Enterprise last month named the firm as the preferred bidder after it submitted plans for the family leisure resort, The Iconic Leisure Resort Loch Lomond.
The online petition was created by George Mcmillan and reports 20,752 out of a target of 25,000 signatures.
He posted: "Loch Lomond and the Trossachs are a National Park.
"They are not a commercially themed area. It is a place of natural beauty of which would be forever reduced if developments like this one get the go ahead.
"We must stand up to this as a strong voice against the commercialisation of a national gem for future generations.
"This will in turn keep them free from these kind of planning applications for now and into the future.
"If we set a strong precedent the planning officials will know we wish to preserve our National Parks."
A Scottish Enterprise spokesperson said: “The development at West Riverside in Balloch holds huge economic potential not only through job creation but also in securing the National Park as a key tourism destination.
Read more: Conservationists criticise Trump-style sand dune golf course plan
"Plans are at a very early stage involving significant consultation between the local community and the National Park Authority.
"It is important to note there are no plans for a theme park and any proposed development would be in keeping with the National Park and its natural beauty.
"As the masterplanning phase commences further consultation and community engagement will be a key part of this process.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel