Planners to recommend Craig Tara extension despite 273 objections

Planners will recommend giving Craig Tara Holiday Park bosses the go ahead to replace its golf course with almost 140 new caravan pitches.

The development has faced significant opposition, largely on claims that the extension and additional traffic on Dunure Road would ‘exacerbate the existing traffic issues’ and increase the risk of injury and fatalities on the road as a result of queuing and cars trying to bypass tailbacks unsafely as a result.

Objectors said residents would ‘bear the brunt’ of the disruption.

Other objections were raised about the holiday park becoming too big, concerns about crime and anti-social behaviour at Craig Tara and the loss of the golf course and green space.

Ayrshire Roads Alliance had initially objected to the plans, but removed their opposition once they had examined the mitigations put forward by the park.

Plans deemed "acceptable" by planning officers

The development proposals involve the change of use and redevelopment of an existing ancillary 9-hole golf course situated within Craig Tara Holiday Park to form an extension to this established and longstanding tourism facility.

This internal expansion of the park will incorporate 137 new pitches for caravans alongside supporting infrastructure, landscaping, accesses and road and traffic mitigation.

The planning officer’s report states: “The proposal is considered to represent an acceptable promotion of tourism and tourist accommodation and an acceptable growth of an existing rural tourism business.”

A total of 223 objections have been sent to South Ayrshire Council, none of which have been considered by planners to ‘merit refusal of this application’.

The park opened as Butlins Ayr just after World War Two, before being renamed Wonderwest World in 1987. It was taken over by Haven who renamed it Craig Tara in 1999.

Plans would take number of caravans to over 1,500

More than 1,400 static caravans are in the park, either for rental tourist accommodation and or owned privately.

The park currently has a license from South Ayrshire Council allowing up to 1,457 pitches, meaning that, if approved, the number of pitches would rise above that limit.

The report states that the nature of the golf course meant a different approach from one used by the community.

It said: “The 9-hole golf course itself is not a typical or conventional golf facility and functions in an ancillary and subordinate manner to the park, with it being private and only available for the use of guests or users of the holiday park and not available for public recreational access or wider community use.”

In 2003 an application for an extension to the site, including the course, was approved by the council.

Report says expansion will not have an adverse environmental impact

The report states the proposal “will deliver a commensurate extension to the park which will (subject to a suite of mitigation secured through conditions) not have an adverse impact on environmental and ecological receptors, on transport and infrastructure, in landscape and visual terms or in terms of the amenity of residential properties or neighbouring land uses”.

“The points raised in the representations received are considered in detail and following an in-depth review it is not considered that any points raised would merit refusal of this application. ”

Councillors on South Ayrshire Regulatory Panel will consider the application on Wednesday, February 28.

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