For five years, developer Skelwith Leisure has been negotiating the construction of a 300 bedroom hotel and leisure complex in the quiet North Yorkshire village of Flaxby, near Knaresborough. This week, it has emerged that the time spent planning the project has finally paid off and the initial groundwork required for the property will begin later this month.
Skelwith Leisure originally purchased the golf club in Flaxby in 2008 with a view to turning it into a luxury retreat for keen golfers. However, while planning permission for the project was obtained in 2010, negotiations with the local authorities, Highways Agency and landowners in the surrounding area took significantly longer to reach a successful conclusion.
Fortunately, an agreement was made in February and all required legal documents have now been signed. Discussions are now taking place with North Yorkshire County Council to ensure that the surrounding road network is disrupted as little as possible by the groundwork needed to provide access to the completed development – this will include constructing a new roundabout on the A59, which may pose a problem for commuters in the coming weeks.
Managing director of Skelwith Leisure, Paul Ellis, expressed his relief at the successful completion of negotiations.
He said; “It has been a long journey to be able to start work on this ambitious project but I am delighted now to be able to finally get cracking.
“We have been working hard for the last three years with Harrogate Council, North Yorkshire Council, the Highways Agency and various other parties to get to this position – it is a large and complex development and one which we feel will offer many benefits to the whole area.
“In the last three years we have successfully developed and opened Raithwaite Hall Country Retreat near Whitby and we have learned many lessons from that project that we will utilise for the Flaxby project.”
Once completed, the 240,000 square foot-plus hotel will be one of the biggest hotels in the north of England and will include features such as a luxury spa and gym complex, small boutiques, a purpose-built conference centre and a number of restaurants and bars.
Although no tenants have as yet been confirmed for within the hotel, Troon Golf will be managing the exterior 27-hole Flaxby Park Golf Course and is planning on using its position to attract more major events to the Yorkshire village.
Yet the local community will potentially benefit from this project most of all, with 300 jobs being created on the luxury site. With the North still struggling to provide gainful employment for workers and Yorkshire being particularly affected by this, perhaps Flaxby Country Resort will become the catalyst for change in the area.
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