Morecambe community to engage in Eden Project North conversations

The team behind Eden Project North is seeking ideas from the people of Morecambe to help shape the future of the project at a series of community conversations.

The events, which will take place in venues around the town between Friday October 18 and Tuesday October 22, will enable people to ask questions and give their thoughts, ideas and hopes about what they think Eden Project North should become.

Eden will collate feedback from the community and report back with its findings after the conversations.

David Harland, Chief Executive of Eden Project International Limited, said: “We have been overwhelmed by the support we have received so far from the Morecambe community and we’re really looking forward to meeting people and hearing about their hopes and ideas for Eden Project North in a more formal setting.

“This is an early stage engagement and there is still plenty of work to do on developing ideas for the project, so the conversations we have at these events will help influence what Eden Project North will become.”

Eden Project North is a development proposed for the Morecambe seafront. The project aims to combine indoor and outdoor experiences which connect people with the internationally significant natural environment of Morecambe Bay while also enhancing wellbeing.

The project aims to inspire connection with the natural world through a series of zones, offering an immersive and unique visitor experience. The zones will be housed in mussel shell-shaped domes and linked together with an entrance area known as the Bay Hall.

The Above the Bay area will be an environment filled with plants and art exhibits, showcasing natural abundance and the rhythms of life linked to the sun.

Below the Bay will be an immersive series of theatrical experiences that bring to life lunar rhythms and tides.

The Natural Sanctuary will be an area focussed on the health-giving aspects of the seaside with bookable wellbeing treatments.

The Natural Observatory will be the home of Eden Project North’s research and education programmes.

Eden also has plans to create satellite elements on the promenade as well as on the sands of the Bay itself.

A planning application for the project is due to be submitted in spring next year (2020). Eden began the planning process in June this year by submitting its Environmental Impact Assessment Scoping Report to Lancaster City Council.

Eden Project North is due to open in spring 2023, following a two-year construction period.

Eden Project International Limited (EPIL) is working with Lancashire Enterprise Partnership, Lancaster University, Lancashire County Council and Lancaster City Council to deliver Eden Project North.

The consultation events are as follows:

• Friday October 18, midday to 7pm and Saturday October 19, midday to 8pm – Winter Gardens, 209 Marine Rd Central, LA4 4BU
• Monday October 21, midday to 8pm – Stanley’s Community Centre, 79–83 Stanley Road, LA3 1UT
• Tuesday October 22, midday to 8pm – Bare Village Club, 20 Bare Lane, LA4 6DF

All the events are free of charge and people are welcome to drop in at a time of their choosing. There will be hot drinks and cake available alongside activities for children, including dressing up and seaside scenes with face-shaped cutouts.