Flamingo Land unveils plans for Scarborough theme park

The would-be developer, which runs the theme park of the same name at Malton, North Yorkshire, wants to demolish the theatre and build a roller coaster, botanical gardens and a 55m lighthouse structure.

Flamingo Land attracts more than 1.5 million visitors a year.

Its working title for the Scarborough scheme is ‘Flamingo Land Coast’.

Flamingo Land is partnering with Leeds-based property and construction company, GMI Estates, to progress the project.

Details of Flamingo Land’s ideas for the site were first released last month in a report to the council’s Cabinet.

They included a glass roofed botanical gardens, a roller coaster, a 55metre iconic lighthouse structure and ‘Space Shot Tower’, which propels customers 55 metres into the sky, an elevated sea view bar, restaurant and function space, a walk-through aviary and a new town square for Scarborough.

Yesterday a council spokeswoman said the bidder was being named in a bid to quash “detrimental tumours”.

“Following the publication of the report, there was some public concern about the credibility of bidder B and its ability to deliver a first class visitor attraction worthy of the prominent seafront site. Therefore to quash any detrimental rumours and to help raise public confidence in the council’s decision to undertake due diligence on the proposals and progress negotiations with bidder B, Flamingo Land agreed to its identity and illustrations of its concept drawings being released today.”

Councillor Derek Bastiman, Cabinet Member for strategic planning and regeneration said: “We’re delighted that we’ve been able to announce Flamingo Land as the identity behind bidder B. The prominence of the proposed development site on Scarborough’s south bay seafront is an ideal match for such a popular and highly successful family entertainment brand and we are very confident that, in Flamingo Land, we have a partner with the ability to deliver and drive up public confidence in the project.

“It is important to stress however that the plans are very much in their infancy and there are many, many months of negotiations and formal processes to go through before construction can be guaranteed. What we do already have though is a very strong commitment and dedication from Flamingo Land’s team to work in partnership with us and GMI to progress this important project for the borough.”

Gordon Gibb, of Flamingo Land Limited said: “Scarborough is my home town so it gives me great pleasure, both personally and on behalf of Flamingo Land Limited, to be associated with developing a major visitor attraction on the old Futurist site.”

Deborah Doyle, of GMI Estates, said the council has been “extremely positive about developing its tourism plans for the town”.