THE iconic Camelot theme park in Lancashire, which has been rotting for 12 years, could be replaced with a 350-home village under new proposals.
Inspired by the legend of King Arthur, the now decaying, desolate theme park opened in Chorley in 1983, closing its doors in 2012.
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It enthralled punters with rides and restaurants inspired by the mythical king, the knights of the Round Table and Arthur’s legendary sword Excalibur for 41 years.
It even boasted a live jousting ring.
Local legend has it that the area was once covered by the largest freshwater lake in England, Martin Mere, until it was drained in 1692.
The story goes that Arthur’s number two, Sir Lancelot’s parents, King Ban of Benwich and his queen Elaine, escaped to Lancashire from their sworn enemies in France.
Elaine helped King Ban, who had fallen and briefly left her son, Lancelot, on the shore of the lake, where he was abducted by a nymph, Vivian, who vanished into the depths of the lake with him.
Nymph Vivian raised Lancelot as her own, and he was later knighted “Sir Lancelot of the Lake.”
But it shuttered its doors in 2012 after nearly 30 years of bewitching children and adults alike, with its owners blaming bad weather and the Olympics for reduced footfall.
After being bulldozed in 2020, eerie overhead images showed decapitated statues, rusty roller coasters and restaurants overgrown with vines.
Perhaps the most spooky are the sinister medieval canopies where jousting was once hosted.
Since its closure, it’s only been used for the occasional live-action zombie horror experiences, commercialising the spooky scene.
But the current owners, Story Homes, have approached Chorley Borough Council with a “Screening Opinion” request to identify environmental issues before requesting a full planning application for a spanking new village.
They claim that the planned housing development would blend seamlessly with the local landscape.
Story Homes told the Express: “The area is characterised by development including residential dwellings to the west, and M6 to the east, which is already an urbanised area and would therefore not distinctly change the character of the area.”
A screening opinion is a formal way for the developers to suss whether or not an Envinronmental Impact Assesment (EIA) will be needed.
The request to develop 350 homes is bold considering that multiple planning applications on the Camelot site have been rejected due to a lack of infrastructure and fears around the green belt.
A planning application for 420 homes was rejected in 2014, another application for a more modest 275 homes was rejected in 2016.
Once again, in 2018, Story Homes had plans for a misely 195 homes on the site rejected.
Research in 2019 estimated that you could feasibly build 6,294 new homes on the 140-acre site, with a theoretical value of £790million.
The latest request states: “It is the intention that an application will be submitted for the following: ‘Outline planning application (with all matters reserved save for the principal means of access) for a residential development of up to 350 homes (Use Class C3) and community hub, with associated habitat creation, landscaping, open space, parking, footpaths/cycleways, drainage and other infrastructure’.
“The proposed development includes a residential-led scheme for up to 350 homes, to deliver a mix of much-needed family homes and a community hub that can offer an accessible local facility for the community.”
It explains that “a series of sustainable transport measures will be proposed, such as off-site pedestrian and cycle link improvements and bus service improvements,” and that “suitable standoff distances will be embedded” into the master plan to protect existing sensitive habitats.
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