Bournemouth: Terence O’Rourke secures planning for world-class golf resort
Planning and design consultancy Terence O’Rourke, based in Bournemouth, has helped St Mellion International Golf Resort gain planning permission for 199 golf homes, bringing its vision of hosting world-class tournaments in the South West a step closer.
Set in 450 acres of Cornish countryside, the resort has long been renowned for its prestigious Jack Nicklaus Signature and Kernow golf courses. From the 1970s to the 1990s the spot hosted major tournaments, including the Benson and Hedges International Open, but in subsequent years the site lost out on hosting large-scale competitions due to a lack of accommodation and extra facilities.
In 2004 the site was bought by Crown Golf, which had ambitious plans to bring major tournaments back to St Mellion by creating an enhanced golf resort to compete with the very best in the world, thereby restoring the venue to its former glory, with associated benefits to facilitate the sustainable economic growth of Cornwall and the region.
In September 2007, Terence O’Rourke secured outline planning approval for Crown Golf to enhance St Mellion International Resort and since then has invested £20 million into upgrades, which included rebuilding and extending the hotel and competing the refurbishment of the clubhouse leisure and spa facility.
The plans also included proposals to build 265 golf homes within three sites of the resort. However, during the recession the development company constructing the units ceased trading, having only built 66 of the golf homes and the remaining 199 were put on hold.
Last summer Terence O’Rourke was once again appointed to produce a new outline planning application to enable the original vision as set out in 2007 to be completed.
Its team of planning experts worked closely with Crown Golf and experts at WSP to produce a new application that highlighted the potential benefits of the development to the local economy. Working closely with the local planning authority, statutory consultees and local groups meant that at the end of last year the plans were approved with no objections and Crown Golf is now looking for a development partner to bring the plans to fruition in 2015. Once complete, the new development will create around 60 new jobs and could bring world-class tournaments back to the area.
