The boss of a South Lakeland zoo has vowed to appeal against the district council’s decision to turn down an application for new parking areas.
Jo Marsden said the changes at Lakeland Wildlife Oasis were necessary to cope with increasing visitor numbers.
“At the busiest times, people cannot get in,” said Mrs Marsden, director of the zoo near Milnthorpe.
“There is nowhere else to park safely nearby – literally – so people do just tend to give up. Staff have been boxing themselves in on an extra little patch.”
The proposal would have seen 44 extra vehicle spaces introduced at the zoo, bringing the total number of spaces at the site to 109.
Approval was also being sought for the creation of a new reception area and nature reserve.
In turning down the application, a South Lakeland District Council spokesman said insufficient evidence had been provided to justify the need for a car park of this scale.
“This proposal would cause unacceptable harm to the landscape character of the Arnside and Silverdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) from short- and long-ranging views, for which landscaping would not adequately mitigate,” said the spokesman.
Mrs Marsden said she was disappointed by the outcome as changes to the plans were made following a response from the AONB team.
She said the work outlined by the application had been in the pipeline ‘for many years’ but had stalled until Lakeland Wildlife Oasis was able to purchase adjacent land.
The zoo is also seeking membership with the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria. This would enable it to become involved with a greater number of captive-breeding programmes.
However, Mrs Marsden says this would require a perimeter fence to be erected around the site – which is more difficult with a centrally located car park.
The application envisaged closure of the existing car park and the erection, in a new location, of a permeable parking area giving way to a grassed overflow parking area.
Mrs Marsden said the zoo would be looking again at its application, appealing the decision and resubmitting the plans.
