Eden Project North to open in Morecambe with lidos and performance spaces
‘I decided there’s been enough decline over the years and we needed something big – a signature attraction,’ said Ian Hughes
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Your support makes all the difference.As the latest ITV drama, The Bay, begins its run, the town where the gritty crime thriller is set is looking forward to a more positive tourism draw: Eden Project North.
Morecambe has been selected by the innovative Cornwall attraction as its second British location. Work is expected to begin next year, with the aim of opening to the public in 2022.
“The vision is of a seaside resort for the 21st century includes reimagined lidos, gardens, performance spaces, immersive experiences and observatories,” says Eden Project International.
The idea was hatched five years ago by a local social entrepreneur, Ian Hughes.
“I decided there’s been enough decline over the years and we needed something big – a signature attraction,” he told The Independent.
“I looked at things like Tate St Ives, the Turner in Margate, and I thought what could we have here? It was a no-brainer: it had to be an Eden Project.”
“Morecambe is an island in a sea of internationally important ecological areas.”
Plans have already been drawn up by Grimshaw Architects for a series of five mussel-shaped domes to occupy an area on the seafront which was once home to the Bubbles swimming pool and Dome Theatre.
“We want to bring people to see and experience the Bay in a different way,” said David Harland, the chief executive of Eden Project International.
“It will get people in touch with what’s out in the Bay, and connect people back to the natural world.”
As negotiations continue, little is known about the likely contents of the Eden Project North. But a local artist, Jenny Natusch, has conceived the idea of a “planktonarium” – enabling visitors to see and learn about the most basic element of the food chain.
Ms Natusch works with grains of sand and “micro-life”. She said: “Plankton is wonderful. There’s so much we don’t see because we don’t have microscopes for eyes.
“You see everything within a droplet of water. There’s so much to see in the world that we are missing.
“I can’t think of a better place in the world to have a planktonarium than Morecambe – to look at this undiscovered spectrum of life in this undiscovered, wonderful seaside town.”
Chris Bailey, who now lives in the neighbouring town of Heysham, said: “When I was a youngster, I used to visit here, it was a great place for holidays.
“It would be fantastic for the area, and bring families in again. Bring it on.”
Mr Hughes echoed that thought: “It would be a game changer for the whole region, a facility that would attract visitors who are staying in Blackpool or the Lake District. There’s a catchment area of 13 million within a couple of hours.”
The social entrepreneur is now taking a back seat as the planning gets under way.
“I achieved what I set out to do: to get it on the table,” he said.
“Mission accomplished for me.”
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