A £150m fake Caribbean beach and a theme park akin to to Disneyland are among the projects that could have changed New Brighton.
Long before the Wirral resort's Marine Point development was even planned, the “Ocean Dome” was seen as the ideal scheme to breathe new life into the seaside resort. The promises were endless – it would create up to 200 jobs and draw in more than a million visitors a year.
Based on the Mitsubishi-built Ocean Dome resort that opened in Moyazuki, Japan, in 1993, the attraction would have included a beach complete with wave machine, climate control and a retractable roof.
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The Ocean Dome was only one of many plans over the years aimed at reviving the fortunes of New Brighton. Here are some of the other schemes that failed over the years– and the one that eventually succeeded.
Leisure development on the Tower Grounds
New Brighton’s Tower Grounds were once home to a structure taller than the Blackpool Tower as well as popular leisure attractions like a ballroom and fairground. The tower was dismantled in 1921 and the ballroom was destroyed by fire in April 1969.
In the early 1970s, a £10million leisure development and sports complex centred on the Tower Grounds was suggested by local politicians, but the plans failed to materialise.
A new Covent Garden
Another ambitious plan would have seen Victoria Road transformed into a shopping area to compare with London’s Covent Garden. Despite initial excitement locally, the idea fizzled out.
Disneyland and a sports arena
In the 1980s, businessman John Anton and his New Brighton Development Company planned a 10,000-seater indoor sports area, casino, shopping centre and Disney-style theme park for New Brighton.
The scheme failed to attract sufficient financial backing and was scrapped. A casino did open in New Brighton in 2012 as part of the Marine Point development, but failed to pull in the crowds and closed after three years. The unit is still vacant.
Poseidon
The figure of a reclining Neptune – later renamed Poseidon – was put forward in 2001 by sculptor Tom Murphy. It would have been the length of five buses with the head rising 60ft above the Mersey seabed in new Brighton.
One final design would have seen Neptune lying on the seabed surrounded by dolphins and sharks. At the time, Wirral councillors had high hopes it could become a global monument to match the Statue of Liberty and the Eiffel Tower.
However, the idea of a giant statue in the Mersey was a step too far – and deemed too expensive – and caution won out.
Tesseract Park
Would this have been Wirral’s answer to the Millennium Dome? The interestingly-named Tesseract was a project which hoped to secure funding from the Millennium Commission, set up to fund projects marking the year 2000.
Wirral’s bid was for a new New Brighton tower, pavilion and park – but it failed to make the shortlist.
The Ocean Dome
The Ocean Dome, which would have been built on the promenade, was based on the Mitsubishi-built Ocean Dome resort that opened in Moyazuki, Japan, in 1993. Reports in 1998 and 1999 said Wirral Council held talks with the Japanese construction giant and worked with developers Marubena to assess whether a New Brighton version would be capable of attracting the private sector investment that was vital to the project.
The dome would have had the aforementioned fake Caribbean beach, complete with wave machine and climate control. Supporters said initial studies suggested the Ocean Dome would be a success, but despite the initial burst of enthusiasm, realism won out.
After a series of feasibility studies, Wirral councillors concluded in 2000 that they couldn’t afford to build it.
A new pier
At the time the Ocean Dome was being discussed, hopes were high that the dome could trigger restoration of New Brighton’s ferry service following construction of a new pier. Perhaps getting a little ahead of themselves, councillors said transport infrastructure in Wallasey and the resort needed a re-think and feared they would become choked with an influx of hundreds of cars a day.
Some saw a new pier as an answer, while another suggestion was a giant park-and-ride scheme based in Moreton using “state-of-the-art trains” to ferry visitors along a four-mile stretch of the riverside to the Ocean Dome.
Marine Point
After years of false starts, few believed it would ever happen – but the Marine Point leisure development finally opened in 2012. The largest development in Wirral for decades, it initially divided residents, despite widespread enthusiasm for the rebuilding of the Floral Pavilion Theatre.
Plans to build on the resort’s marine lake proved particularly controversial, and initial plans were rejected following a lengthy public inquiry. The scheme went through a major redesign and emerged as a popular tourist destination with a hotel, shops, children’s play centre and restaurants – but no new outdoor pool, to the disappointment of many.
