Speaking up for Flamingo Land

ROSE Harvie condemns the proposed Flamingo Land development in Balloch (More peace, less bling please on the bonnie banks, Letters, October 2).

Several petitions have been created on social media objecting to these developments. The problem is, people are objecting to what is just an outline plan so they cannot yet know what they are objecting to.

Another problem is the petitions are being shared on social media and people from all over the UK and the rest of world are signing them in what is basically a knee-jerk reaction to emotive statements by their creators. The final project plan has not yet been submitted, far less granted planning permission.

The people in Balloch, the stakeholders if you like, have been and continue to be fully consulted on this and the wider “Live In Balloch” plan. I live a few hundred yards away from the development site and I attended a meeting a couple of weeks ago where the Live In Balloch plan was presented to the public. The overriding impression I got was very positive.

The development is not on Loch Lomond at all. It is on the west bank of the River Leven in Balloch on a piece of ground that was once a railway siding and shunting yard. This piece of ground has been earmarked for tourist development for around 20 years. It is now just a pathway to Loch Lomond shores that is often frequented by unsavoury characters after dark, when it becomes a no-go area for most of the locals. A boutique hotel and a few self-catering cabins sounds much more acceptable to me.

Most of the people in Balloch I have spoken to are cautiously in favour of the Flamingo Land (a Scottish company) proposal. They are certainly not of a mind to condemn it before seeing what it entails.