Wow.
Just one word is needed to describe the reaction to exciting plans for the brand new Southport Cove Resort, with Southport’s seafront undergoing a spectacular transformation.
The £40million scheme will be situated at Princes Park in Southport, surrounded by: Southport Pleasureland; Southport seafront; Ocean Plaza; and the Marine Lake, with Victoria Park and Dunes Leisure Centre close by.
It is just part of the multi-million pound redevelopment of the Southport seafront into a truly world class attraction.
It’s taken 12 years to get to where we are now – and it’s looking like it’s going to be worth the wait.
Southport is currently crossing the i’s and crossing the t’s on its ambitious plans for Southport Town Deal funding which will be submitted to the Government imminently and will hopefully attract millions of pounds in further public funding to improve our town.
Go Surf’s commitment to invest £40milion for its new, all-year-round development with a world class surf wave pool at the heart of Southport Cove Resort is a massive vote in investor confidence.
Southport Pleasureland has revealed plans for an exciting new Viking themed attraction
It will sit next door to Southport Pleasureland, which itself is about to undergo multi-million pound work to become an all-year indoor attraction. Plans for its new Viking themed adventure golf and restaurant have already been submitted to Sefton Council.
Victoria Park nearby has recently revealed plans for some exciting brand new events for next year including Comedy In The Park and the Smoke and Fire Festival, in a growing calendar which will once again of course be headlined by the famous Southport Flower Show. Plans for a Summer Classics style event have also been under discussion.
They will go well with existing events in the area such as Southport Air Show, the British Musical Fireworks Championship and Southport Food & Drink Festival.
Redevelopment work on Southport’s Splash World, which sits next to Dunes Leisure Centre, have been taking place this year, with work delayed by the Covid pandemic. Watch out for that reopening soon.
Look out too for our brand new multi-million pound Southport Lifeboat Station on Marine Drive, with work nearing completion.
This all complements the transformation in recent years of Kings Gardens (£6million), Southport Pier (£3.5million) and The Atkinson (£20million).
It’s hard to think back to where we were 12 years ago.
Back in 2008, Urban Splash was in charge of the ‘Marine Park’ site, but serious proposals never saw the light of day and they abandoned the project as the banking crash set in.
Blackpool Pleasure Beach announced the closure of Southport’s fairground, and sent workers with chainsaws to destroy the Cyclone rollercoaster and other favourite rides.
Sefton Council Chief Executive Graham Heywood spoke back then of the days of the ‘bucket and spade holiday’ being over for Southport.
Southport Pier was in serious need of renovation, and Kings Gardens back then was a vandalised mess. Sandgrounders were scarred by the memory of the collapse of the proposed water park scheme for Ocean Plaza, and the early demise of Sibec before that.
The Marine Way Bridge opened in 2007, followed the next year by the Ramada Plaza Hotel (now Bliss Hotel) and the Vincent Hotel, but it’s taken until now to seriously catch up with where we were back then.
Look how far we’ve come since those days. We’re not there yet – we still have our wishlist of what to improve. A revamped Lord Street. A new Southport Theatre and Convention Centre complex. A better Southport Railway Station. Improvements in parks such as Botanic Gardens and Hesketh Park. A better gateway to Ainsdale Beach.
But importantly there are some exciting plans in place now for Southport which build on good foundations, ambitious plans to keep creating new opportunities within our town and a momentum that will continue to attract new investment.
All of it will help the superb shops, hotels, restaurants bars and other businesses we already have here.
Today, millions of pounds in private and public investment are pouring into Southport’s seafront – all of it designed to create hundreds of new jobs, attract millions of new visitors and establish Southport as a premier seaside destination.
Southport really is making waves.
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