New Brighton seaside attraction owner fears he will be forced out of business

Oct 5 2011 by Liam Murphy, Heswall News

THE owner of one of the oldest and best-loved attractions in a Wirral seaside resort fears he will be put out of business by last-minute changes to a major redevelopment scheme.

The £60m regeneration project to breathe new life into New Brighton is nearing completion, with a Morrisons supermarket due to open next month and cinema later this year.

But David Wilkie, whose family has owned the landmark New Palace on the seafront for a century, said changes to the scheme approved by Wirral Council’s ruling cabinet will have devastating consequences for his business.

He has also warned the site of the historic art deco building has already proven attractive to potential investors for apartments, a route he may be forced to consider – although he insisted he wants to protect the jobs of 65 people who work for him by continuing.

The cabinet approved an application by Liverpool-based developer Neptune to use part of the site as a children’s “soft play area” which Mr Wilkie said is in direct competition with his business, which he said brings in 250,000 visitors a year.

Previously Neptune said the building would be used as a health centre and gym, but told the council there was little or no interest from operators in that type of business.

Neptune’s Rob Mason said the change to a soft play area would cost them “a lot of money” and if an operator was interested in running it as a gym and open-air pool, “we would clearly be foolish not to look at it”.

He said there were two possible gym operators in talks with Neptune but it was increasingly likely the site would become a children’s play area.

He said: “We are looking at a three-week window to consider it and will keep all options open.”

Mr Mason insisted that increased visitor numbers brought in by the new development would allow both the Neptune and the New Palace and Adventureland attractions to succeed, but that was strongly disputed by Mr Wilkie.

Mr Wilkie, who is the fourth generation of his family to own and operate the traditional seaside attraction, wrote to the council appealing for them to reconsider, but instead saw the Neptune plans approved.

He said: “I cannot for the life of me understand why they allowed this to go through with the obvious problems for our business.

“I have invested in New Brighton. We have struggled through all the bad times and provided entertainment and improved the site as much as we could. This is the thanks we get.”

He added: “I told the council I have 65 jobs on my site and if part of it goes down, it will take the rest with it.

“I had a massive offer last year to sell up as a building plot, but I do not want to do that. I have put a lot of effort into this business over the last 30 years.”

New Brighton Cllr Pat Hackett said he understood Mr Wilkie’s concerns but believed “competition not monopolies is healthy for New Brighton”.

He said: “It is a tribute to all concerned that in this economic downturn we have this fantastic scheme which will bring so much life back to New Brighton, with thousands of more visitors compared with what we have now.

“Businesses should be ready to take advantage of that and we should be backing this to the hilt.”