A Welsh language pressure group has opposed a revised planning application to establish a new holiday site for fear that one part of north Wales is turning into a "playground for England". The application, submitted by Manchester-based company, The Luxury Lodge Group Ltd, intends to build 40 cabins and glamping pods in the Ogwen Valley in Gwynedd, which is home to some of Eryri National Park's biggest mountains, as well the adventure park Zip World.
Coed Wern Tŷ Gwyn, which is located between Felin Hen and Glasinfryn in the valley, is 6.63 hectares in size and includes a woodland area. Pressure group, Cylch yr Iaith, has argued that the proposed development on the land is "unacceptable" due to the fact that the Arfon district of Gwynedd has "too many" of such tourist developments and can have a negative affect on neighbouring communities. The Luxury Lodge Group Ltd has said that its company value is to integrate the local community and the Welsh language in the business.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Cylch yr Iaith said: "Over-provision is the main reason for rejecting this proposed development. What over-provision means is too many of the same types of tourist developments in the county, in part of the county, or in a community. Gwynedd Council's planning authority has accepted that over-provision is a relevant factor when considering a tourist planning application and a reason for rejecting it."
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They added: "Over-provision is part of the over-tourism that turns Gwynedd into a playground for England, and everyone knows about parts of the county where this has ruined local communities. Gwynedd Council has accepted that this type of tourism is unsustainable because the negative effects offset the positive effects. The development must be refused.
"If planning permission is granted, it is more than possible that there would be another planning application in the future to expand the site and increase the number of units. It could open the door to other tourist developments, too. Gwynedd is already considered a 'tourist area', and in terms of the surrounding communities, there are already second homes and short-term holiday units. This development can only make that worse."
It comes at a time of significant changes to policies around holiday lets and homes in Wales. From April, 2023, Cyngor Gwynedd has agreed to increase its council tax premium on second homes, from 100% to 150%. It also agreed to keep the premium on long-term vacant houses at a rate of 100%. On top of this, come April, holiday homes will have to be let out for more than 182 days a year and be available for let for upwards of 252 days, can pay business rates instead of council tax.
According to Cylch yr Iaith, there are too many holiday cabins and caravan sites in the district of Arfon already, with some neighbouring sites said to have around 300 units each and one with as many as 700. The Welsh language pressure group has also disputed that a development of its kind would create jobs in the local area, and that they would encourage the members of the Gwynedd Planning Committee to refuse planning permission for the "harmful" development.
"This is a development from a company across the border," a spokesperson added. "Only one caretaker will be needed there, and all necessities and services can be brought there along the A55 in no time. You don't have to employ anyone local or buy anything locally. This is not a matter of creating support for local people, but of creating a profit for a company that does not mean anything to the area or the community."
A spokesperson for The Luxury Lodge Group Ltd said: "One of our company values is to be a good neighbour and integrate ourselves in any of the communities where we develop a park. We will certainly be looking into ways of integrating the Welsh language into our park as much as we possibly can. It's something we are enthusiastic about, it's something we are aware of the concerns, and we would like to address those concerns by involving the Welsh language when we can."
When asked about the employment the park would bring to the area, the spokesperson said: "Once again, one of our values as a company is to integrate ourselves in the community. So what's really important to us is when we are recruiting staff at the park that we involve and recruit members of the community, in fact a lot of our lodges in other parks are built in Porthmadog. We try and source from as much local suppliers as possible, and when it comes to recruiting staff, we'd love to recruit from the local community. It's what we are about."
A spokesperson for Gwynedd Council said: "As a local planning authority, Gwynedd Council treats each application individually and on its merits, considering all relevant planning issues and making decisions on applications in accordance with relevant local and national planning policies.
"We can confirm that revised plans and documents on planning application number C18/0767/16/LL have recently been submitted to the council, and will receive consideration in accordance with the normal planning procedure. No date has been confirmed at the moment for reporting the application to Gwynedd Council's planning committee"
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