Public 'not misled' over scaled down Eden project

People "have not been misled" by the scale of the Eden Project Morecambe after the eco-attraction's design was changed from four domes to two, the boss of the scheme has said.

The updated plans for the promenade site, including shell-shaped domes, gardens inspired by the coast, "causeway" and sea walls, have been approved by Lancaster City Council.

Eden said will help them to stick to their £100m budget, reflecting two years of feedback, and will have less impact on nearby landmarks including the Midland Hotel and Winter Gardens venue.

Project director, John Pye, said the toned-down design would not disappoint, and the project "more efficient and environmentally sustainable".

He said: "I understand people have seen the scale of the original plan, but"we've been working really hard to make the structures, the gardens more efficient".

He said the site footprint has not changed and reaching "this major milestone of achieving planning consent" allows the company to "progress forward".

"What we've not done is compromise on the visitor experience."

David Waddington, chairman of Morecambe Business Improvement District, said: "I think the overall impact will be the same" and "we feel very fortunate" the attraction is coming to the town.

"There's huge things to be positive about," he said.

"The visitor numbers will still suggest that we are going to see a huge increase in the number of people coming to Morecambe."

But former MP David Morris said he is "quite disappointed".

Morris represented Morecambe and Lunesdale for the Conservative party until he lost his seat in the 2024 general election, but had worked to bring the attraction to the town.

"Eden should be actually opening now and there's nothing happening," he said.

"I want to see something built, of course I do, but it's not what the government envisaged it would be."

Permission was given in 2022 for a four-dome design and the project has faced "a period of pause and delays".

The new plan has two domes, called the Realm of the Sun and Realm of the Moon, linked by a metronome entrance.

The first planned phase will be a 1.5 acre (0.6 hectare) Bring Me Sunshine community space, inspired by the landscape and seaside culture, with a reference to comedian Eric Morecambe, located between the war memorial and the Midland Hotel and due to open in early 2027.

Later phases will follow with full opening expected in 2028 at the site on the former Bubbles pool and Super Dome site.

Eden Project Morecambe, described as a "global garden" overlooking Morecambe Bay, will become a sister site to the original Eden Project, near St Austell, Cornwall.

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