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[202X] Project Horizon (SW9?): Planning Approved

BigT said:
For me it’s still a strange one being just a coaster, my guess and it’s purely that a guess is if it is a coaster it will be some kind of flying coaster as the building is too small for a real thrill coaster
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Surely it won't be a flying coaster as Towers already has one?
 
BigT said:
For me it’s still a strange one being just a coaster, my guess and it’s purely that a guess is if it is a coaster it will be some kind of flying coaster as the building is too small for a real thrill coaster unless AT have something up their sleeve planning wise?
Would they need to pursue planning for excavation under existing areas? Could they come forward of the building underneath the queue line into existing development areas?
Also that areas IP is DW world, could it fit with that theme but again strange considering half the buildings are empty in that area.
Could it be a whole new land? How long is the agreement with DW for?
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I suspect in the longterm is Project Horizon is built, TWODW and whatever is built into the Dungeons building will all be annexed into a much larger area which honestly if done right could really turn that area around.

Still longing for a Port Discovery retheme for it, can't be worse than TWODW...
 
I'd place my bets on the building being constructed first due to how AT like to have some secrecy around their new projects and so that would definitely work in their favour, plus personally I would like whatever's inside to be at least a little of a surprise, however it will rely on the complexity of what is being built inside as others have said
 
So, the final stretch for this first stage of Project Horizon is hopefully here. Tomorrow a 'Late Representations Report' will be uploaded which details any changes made to an application that is set to be discussed at the following day's planning committee meeting. Usually (but not always) these are done where the initial recommended decision is to refuse permission for the application, in order to persuade the committee to approve, so I'd be surprised to see anything related to PH being included. Yes the approval is dependent on a list of conditions but the park have been pretty proactive, especially with last week's huge documentation update so I'm not sure it'll be necessary to submit anything new at this stage. But then again, I was pretty convinced that this would get refused planning permission, at least without moving the show building further from the Flag Tower, so anything is possible!

Where do we go from here?
Looking ahead, hopefully the Committee goes with the recommendation to approve this application on Thursday afternoon and then attention can turn to looking out for an application relating to the restoration of the Orangery. Remember, this must be submitted and approved prior to any non-demolition work relating to PH taking place. For reference the most recent 'heritage' application for the restoration of the Banqueting Hall window was given approval approximately two months after being submitted (08/04/2019 to 11/06/2019), with similar time frames for both the Grand Conservatory and Prospect Tower restoration projects. Obviously that time frame doesn't include getting the plans drawn up prior to submission, which will presumably be done by CTD Architects given their involvement in both the aforementioned Grand Conservatory and Prospect Tower projects at the park. This is of course assuming the park didn't commission CTD to also draw up plans for the Orangery when they were working on the Grand Conservatory, given the similarities between the two buildings.

When will construction begin
In terms of trying to work out a time frame for when approval will be given and construction on Project Horizon can begin, it's a tricky one. The difference between the conservation/heritage projects and applications for new rides and attractions is that the former will be delegated decisions so approval won't be dependent on there being a Planning Committee meeting. Instead Staffordshire Moorlands District Council will consult both their own/SSC's in-house conservation teams and Historical England before granting or denying approval accordingly. But with the two month time frame being fairly consistent we'll have some sort of educated guess as and when the application is submitted. I don't imagine the park will be hanging around too long after getting the green light before getting to work.
 
rob666 said:
Err...getting ahead of ourselves a bit aren't we?
Off topic crystal ball viewing isn't for the Horizon topic...
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Indeed, can we keep things to Project Horizon in here. There's lots of other topics that discuss potential future additions/changes elsewhere :)
 
Regarding them restoring the Orangery.

Shouldn't restoring the historic buildings be the responsibility of the actual owner of the land, not the people renting it?

I mean it's good it happens, but I'm confused by how the responsibility rests with Alton Towers/Merlin.
 
John_P said:
Regarding them restoring the Orangery.

Shouldn't restoring the historic buildings be the responsibility of the actual owner of the land, not the people renting it?

I mean it's good it happens, but I'm confused by how the responsibility rests with Alton Towers/Merlin.
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Yes Merlin sold the land to get some extra cash but realistically Alton Towers is the important party not Nick Leslu. Also pretty normal in commercial sites for the tenant to be responsible for the buildings not the landowner.
 
Five documents have been added to the application today. Thankfully covering these one by one is a much less daunting task than the last update! Even with the recommendation to approve this application, the park do seem keen to get this project moving as soon as possible and these documents all address conditions stated in the committee report.

Three of the documents cover the arboricultural and woodland management aspects raised in the committee report. Quite frankly I know absolutely zero about this branch (no, I couldn't resist) of the application and whether it'll meet the committee's requirements but it is certainly an attempt if nothing else!

The fourth details how the construction process will take place. The biggest takeaways from our non-council/construction worker viewpoint:
  • The construction period is projected to last approximately 78 weeks.
  • The delivery of building steel work will take place between weeks 35 and 60 of that construction period.
The final document and most important in terms of working out when this project will begin is the Archaeological Watching Brief (courtesy of Archaeological Research Services Ltd) which states "The archaeological works are scheduled to commence in June 2023". Unfortunately it doesn't give an estimated time frame for these works at this point, merely stating that an actual start date and duration will be confirmed in writing.

The projected duration of 78 weeks, assuming construction will be taking place until 2-3 weeks prior to the park's (and this project's) opening day in 2025 would see construction need to start in the final few days of August this year. I imagine it'll take place within days of them getting the green light after the archaeological works.
 
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I had another exciting thought about this project; correct me if I’m wrong here, but won’t Project Horizon represent the first time in decades that a new project has actually expanded the park area?

I could be wrong, but if I’m remembering correctly, the last time that a new project actually expanded the park (in terms of walkable area) was in 1992, when Katanga Canyon and Gloomy Wood were built.

I must admit that there will be something quite exciting about seeing the park increase in size for the first time in years rather than seeing a current attraction get removed or replaced to accommodate Project Horizon!
 
Just as I was about to get started on dinner, the Late Representation Report has been uploaded to the council website. Firstly, I'm particularly pleased that I'm not covering the proposed solar farm in Totmonslow, which has more conditions than an update to macOS. Instead, I'll break down the bits relating to this project.

Objections:
The objectors are not going anywhere and are still parroting the same old complaints that we've seen since the application was first published (i.e. noise, traffic, proximity to heritage items and of course external visibility of the show building). The highlight being the hilariously small amount of the building being visible 'will do irreparable harm to the character of the Churnet Valley landscape'. Obviously nobody is daft enough to attribute their name to that claim, they all get grouped under the enormously generous '3rd party representations'.

Conditions to approval
The park have requested some amendments to the conditions set out in the committee report. Most of these are pointing them in the direction of the new/updated documents that were uploaded last week and earlier today and were considered appropriate, but there are a couple that the officer comments on. The main one that stands out is that the Orangery/Scalloped Wall heritage project has not been formally agreed. Apparently the park has proposed an alternative to that project but as far as I can tell there is no more information on what that is at this point.
 
Reading what @dobbhas stated, if the building is being built week 35-60, of 78 weeka, is it likely that the ride will be built first?
 
Not sure whether the ride will be completed prior to work on the construction of the building, but it certainly seems likely that ride construction will begin first.

Whilst building steel work deliveries are set to start in week 35, I assume the first couple of weeks will be an accumulation, so that once they get going with it progress doesn't need to stop while they're waiting for the next delivery.
 
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Danscott22 said:
Isn't today the day we find out whether it's going to be approved?
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It is indeed.

Today's Committee Meeting
For anyone whose Thursday afternoon is boring enough that you want to watch the webcast of this meeting, you can do (from 2pm) here. Just as a warning, the last planning committee meeting was three hours long and they didn't get to item 10 (which this application is this time around) until approximately two hours in.
 
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