PRESS RELEASE: 18 November 2005

‘Dreamland Must Remain an Amusement Park’: Government Inspector Backs the Save Dreamland Campaign

The Save Dreamland Campaign is today celebrating an important victory in the fight to retain Margate’s historic amusement park. An independent Government inspector has stated that Dreamland should remain an amusement park and the listed Scenic Railway roller coaster at its centre should be protected.

Campaign Leader, Nick Laister, said: “This is fantastic news, and shows that the position we took against the Council was a robust one. The Inspector has accepted every single one of the points we made at last year’s Public Inquiry and has rejected virtually every point made by the Council and the site’s owner. The Council had maintained that Dreamland was no longer viable and were happy to allow the site to be redeveloped for other uses. The Inspector found the evidence of the Save Dreamland Campaign to be compelling and has asked the Council to change the Local Plan to ensure the protection of the amusement park.”

“I am also delighted that the Inspector asked for the Scenic Railway to be retained. He described the Scenic Railway as an ‘extraordinary building’ and was satisfied that it would be viable, even as a stand-alone attraction. Importantly, however, he stated that the setting of the Scenic Railway must also be conserved. He said that this will prevent the site from being used for anything other than an amusement park. We are absolutely delighted about this verdict.”

Nick Laister, who gave evidence at the Inquiry on behalf of the Campaign, added: “We will be watching the Council very closely now, to ensure that it makes the appropriate modifications to its Local Plan.”

This recommendation is contained in the long-awaited Inspector’s Report on the Thanet Local Plan Public Inquiry. The Inquiry, held in June 2004, heard evidence from the Save Dreamland Campaign, which had objected to the Council’s U-turn on protecting Dreamland. Until January 2003, Thanet District Council was committed to retaining Dreamland but, following representations made by the site’s owner in early 2003 (after the statutory deadline for representations to the Local Plan had expired), they changed the Local Plan Policy so that it would allow Dreamland to be completely redeveloped. The Save Dreamland Campaign vigorously objected to this U-turn.

In his Report, the Inspector noted that the Council had re-written the policy “after private discussions with the owner of the site”, which took place after the public consultation period had ended and stated that “no record of the meeting has been presented in evidence”.

The Inspector also saw through the park’s recent decline, noting that its current “run-down ambience…is partly a matter of management.” He concluded that “Dreamland could be managed more intensively”.

Susan Marsh MBE, who acted as advocate at the Inquiry for the Campaign, said:

“The Council told us that they changed the policy because they believed the park to be no longer viable, despite the fact that established operators have publicly stated their willingness to acquire the site and invest millions of pounds in new rides and attractions. What the Council did not seem to realise was that operators of visitor attractions were being priced out by their policy U-turn, which allowed for other forms of development that may attract higher land values. The Inspector took a firm line on this, criticising the Council’s approach.

“Most councils recognise that these sort of tourist sites need to be protected for the benefit of the local economy – unfortunately, this was not the case with Thanet District Council. I think that the Inspector’s Report is a great outcome for the town, its residents, businesses and its millions of visitors.

The Inspector criticised the Council’s replacement policy for Dreamland, stating that it “maximises speculative interest in the site and encourages hope values beyond any ordinary expectation”, stating that “dereliction would be the most likely outcome”. He partly blamed the Council for the park’s current situation, stating the Council’s own policy “would generate the very harmful [redevelopment] pressure which the Development Plan seeks to avert”.

He also stated that “convincing expert evidence was brought to the Inquiry to show that other prospective leisure operators consider an up-to-date amusement park at Dreamland is an attractive venture.”

One of the operators that has made a bid for the site is Southend’s Adventure Island, one of the UK’s most popular theme parks. Its owner, Philip Miller, wants to turn Dreamland into a major regional amusement park destination and has already publicly promised an initial £10m investment in the park, with a restored Scenic Railway at its centre.

The Inspector also completely ruled out a commercial retail development on the site; however, he did say that souvenir shops and craft shops would be acceptable on a minor scale.

To organise interviews, please contact Nick Laister (Campaign Leader) on 01235 838214 (day), 07778 207036 (mobile) or 01235 762186 (evenings and weekends) or Sarah Vickery (Campaign Coordinator) on 01843 220008. Or email press@savedreamland.co.uk.

To find out more about the Save Dreamland Campaign visit the campaign’s website at www.savedreamland.co.uk/. Nick Laister’s Proof of Evidence to the Public Inquiry can be downloaded from the website.

ENDS

Information for Editors

The Save Dreamland Campaign was launched in 2003 to save the Dreamland Pleasure Park, Margate, home of the UK’s oldest roller coaster, the 85-year-old listed Scenic Railway. Dreamland’s owner proposes to replace the park with a shops and houses. The Campaign is led by planning expert Nick Laister, a planning consultant and a leading authority on the British theme park industry. The Campaign is now speaking on behalf of 13,000 people, including local residents, businesses and organisations such as the Margate Historical Society, Margate Civic Society, the Margate Hotel and Guest House Association, European Coaster Club, Roller Coaster Club of Great Britain and SAVE Britain’s Heritage.

The official campaign website is www.savedreamland.co.uk. The campaign can be emailed at campaign@savedreamland.co.uk. The address for all correspondence is Save Dreamland Campaign, The Shell Grotto, Grotto Hill, Margate, Kent CT9 2BU.

The Public Inquiry into the Thanet Local Plan opened on 14 April 2004. Two Inspectors (Mr Harold Stephens and Mr Nicholas Hammans) were appointed to conduct the Inquiry. The future of Dreamland was considered on 29 June 2004 at the Council Offices, Margate.

Nick Laister BA (Hons) DipTP MRTPI MIHT MIPI gave evidence at the Inquiry on behalf of the Campaign. He is a leading authority on the amusement park industry and editor of the web site www.joylandbooks.com. He is a Chartered Town Planner and Technical Director with the RPS Group Plc, the UK’s largest planning consultancy, where he specialises in planning for tourism and leisure. He has been involved in bringing forward numerous major developments across the UK, and has appeared as expert witness at several public inquiries and hearings. He has written articles for a number of newspapers and journals and has been invited to speak at conferences on the subject of planning for tourism and leisure. nick@savedreamland.co.uk.

Susan Marsh MBE acted as advocate at the Inquiry for the Campaign. She lives in Greater Manchester, but has a long family connection with Margate. Susan first became involved in planning matters in the mid-1970s, campaigning to maintain open land for the benefit of the community. She has appeared at a number of public inquiries into local plans, land classification, planning applications and transport matters; variously in support of, and opposition to, her local planning authority. She is actively involved in education, race equality and community development. Susan undertakes all these activities as a volunteer and, in 2002, she was awarded an MBE for services to the community. susan@savedreamland.co.uk.

Dreamland Pleasure Park is located at Belgrave Road, Margate. The telephone number is 01843 227011.

Nick Laister’s Proof of Evidence can be downloaded in full from www.savedreamland.co.uk 

The full Inspector’s Report can be downloaded from the Thanet District Council website: www.thanet.gov.uk.

The Tourism Chapter, in which Dreamland is considered, can be downloaded from here: http://www.thanet.gov.uk/assets/pdfs/LocalPlan/Local%20Plan_Inspectors%20report_1105/Chapter8-Tourism-FinalVersion.pdf
(The Inspector’s conclusions are in paragraphs 59 to 107).