PLEASURE ISLAND TAKEOVER DEAL IMMINENT
MULTI-MILLION TAKEOVER DEAL IMMINENT
A MULTI-million deal to takeover Pleasure Island is imminent.
The 52-acre site has been on the market for nearly four years but an unknown buyer has signalled they about to sign a deal to transform the 52-acre site in Cleethorpes for a leisure attraction.
The deal is understood to include the 10-acre plot next to the entrance which has planning permission for caravans and the car park at the entrance. Owner Melanie Wood told the Grimsby Telegraph the deal was expected to be concluded before the end of this week.
“We have been waiting for a number of weeks but it is about to be signed,” she said.
She is tight-lipped on who the new owners are, but they are committed to maintaining the site as predominantly a leisure attraction.
She added: “It is going to need a lot of work doing to the site. But they are prepared to do that and make a commitment and a lot of money spent on it.” Having owned the family business since 1991, Melanie said: “It has been a bit emotional. It is the right thing to do. The area needs to be alive again and used for the benefit of Cleethorpes.”
The imminent deal came just days after supermarket chain Aldi announced they are looking at sites in Cleethorpes as part of their expansion plans.
Cleethorpes is one of 11 new stores in Lincolnshire. Aldi say they are looking for potential sites of around 1.5 acres and able to accommodate a 20,000 sq ft store with around 100 parking spaces, ideally on a prominent main road and with good visibility and access. Each store is due to employ around 30 staff. Pleasure Island theme park closed at the end of the 2016 season after 23 years of business, with all of the rides and attractions either sold off or left to rot. It attracted thousands of visitors each year, until October 2016, when it closed due to dwindling numbers and rising costs.
With the park now looking a shadow of its former self, there have been calls in recent years for someone to take it over and bring something new to Cleethorpes.
While it has not been confirmed who is in the process of the buying the land, there are suggestions that it could be developed into a mix of retail and leisure space, possibly including a supermarket and holiday lodges.
The area needs to be alive again and used for the benefit of Cleethorpes.
Melanie Wood