New plans for 8,000-seat stadium, hotel & thousands of homes next to site of disastrous ‘£3.5bn British Disneyland'

Scottish Sun

20-05-2025

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BRITS were thrilled to learn of plans for a new 8,000-seat stadium, hotel and thousands of homes next to the failed £3.5billion UK Disneyland.
London Resort was first announced back in 2012, with plans to build on the Swanscombe Peninsula in Kent.
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The Dartford Disneyland was supposed to welcome visitors last year, with funding from Paramount
Credit: The London Resort
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Artist's impressions promised at least six roller coasters, themed fantasy lands and even a giant fairytale-style castle
Credit: The London Resort
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After being announced in 2012, the theme park became bogged down in a planning and legal quagmire
Credit: Not known, clear with picture desk
However, the theme park ran into a number of problems over the years, including the site being designated an SSSI for nationally important invertebrates, breeding birds and plants.
And in January earlier this year, a High Court judge ordered London Resort Company Holdings (LRCH) into liquidation.
But, just stone's throw away from the imagined theme park, there are plans for a new major development.
As reported by The Times, the Northfleet Harbourside project would see 3,500 houses, and 8,000 seater stadium for Ebbsfleet United, hotel and retail sites.
The developers say it will create a brand new community and 3,000 jobs.
Plans have been met with mixed reaction, with some hailing the proposals for the prospect of more wealth injected into the area.
Others are concerned about how small local businesses with fare if they are edged out of their industrial sites.
Despite objection, the developers were given the go ahead in February last year.
The public inquiry stage began today, and it was understood fears were raised over several issues.
A primary worry was the fact that the failed £3.5billion Disneyland and the Northfleet Harbourside project were linked through Abdulla al-Humaidi.
New theme world at paulton's park
Mr al-Humaidi was the businessman who ran the failed Dartford attraction until he was made bankrupt in November 2023.
However the London Resort Company, which was headed by Mr al-Humaidi, say he is now no longer involved with the new plans.
The Dartford Disneyland was supposed to welcome visitors last year, with funding from Paramount.
But Paramount, which is owed £13.5 million, claimed in legal action that Mr al-Humaidi had been convicted of fraud several times in Kuwait.
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Dr Abdulla Al-Humaidi, the Kuwaiti businessman who bankrolled the scheme
Credit: KMG
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Local business owners on the nearby industrial estate fear they could be forced out of business
Credit: Gary Stone
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The Northfleet Harbourside project would see 3,500 houses, and 8,000 seater stadium for Ebbsfleet United
Credit: Gary Stone
Mr al-Humaidi argued all convictions had been overturned on appeal.
The controversial businessman was hit with a three-year-prison sentence in absentia for one outstanding conviction - which he said he will appeal.
Artist's impressions promised at least six roller coasters, themed fantasy lands and even a giant fairytale-style castle, all squeezed onto a peninsular jutting into the Thames Estuary.
Partnerships were even announced with Aardman Animation - the team behind Wallace and Gromit - and the BBC, with hopes for Doctor Who and Top Gear-themed rides.
It was to be surrounded by 3,500 rooms in plush hotels, swanky restaurants, and even two brand new ferry terminals, bringing hope that the project could sustain 33,000 local jobs.
To say that the £2.5billion plans were ambitious would be an understatement.
But after being announced in 2012, the theme park became bogged down in a planning and legal quagmire that dragged on for thirteen years.
The fact the area was declared as a site of special scientific interest further halted operations.
And despite the magical promises from CGI mockups and developers, for people in the area the saga has been anything but a fairytale.
Mr Al-Humaidi, said the park had 'destroyed' his life and "ruined" his reputation.
Timeline of London Resort
October 2012 - The London Resort is announced as London Paramount Entertainment Resort, to open in 2019
April 2013 - Discussion over development after discovery of a rare species of spider
May 2014 - London Paramount Entertainment Resort granted Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project status
December 2014 - Partnership with BBC Worldwide announced
March 2015 - Partnership with Aardman Animation and BFI announced
September 2015 - Opening date pushed back to 2021
November 2016 - Waterpark plans scrapped, opening date pushed to 2022
June 2017 - Paramount pulls out, with park renamed as The London Resort
September 2017 - Opening date pushed back to 2023, with estimated costs rising to £3.5billion
November 2018 - Opening date pushed back to 2024
April 2019 - Partnership with ITV Studios announced.
November 2021 - Natural England designates the area as a SSSI for nationally important invertebrates, breeding birds, plants and geology
March 2022 - Resort application is withdrawn
March 2023 - London Resort Company Holdings goes into administration
April 2023 - A Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) is agreed on
May 2023 - The transfer of a plot of land, considered a material change, occurred without prior notice to the CVA supervisor
June 2024 - Swanscombe Development LLP, the land for The London Resort, is listed for sale
October 2024 - Paramount tells the High Court that LRCH had not adhered to their obligations under the CVA
December 2024 - The judgement is published
New Year 2025: Further High Court hearings are scheduled to decide the fate of London Resort
January 2025: A court hearing will determine whether LRCH can enter administration
The London Resort had been designated a NSIP - a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project.
To proceed, it needed to secure what's known as a Development Consent Order (DCO).
But just a day before years of preparation were due to begin to be presented before planners, in March 2022, London Resort dramatically withdrew the plans, citing environmental and transport issues.
LRCH had limped on ever since - regularly promising to resubmit its plans - but with no real progress made.
The NSIP status - which is listed on the Planning Inspectorate website as applying to LRCH - is likely to die with the company, lifting the cloud of uncertainty which has hung over businesses on the peninsula in recent years.
The judge's decision coincided with the Planning Inspectorate awarding legal costs to a host of companies which had conducted work ahead of the DCO bid, before it was shelved, due to LRCH's 'unreasonable behaviour'.
It said the withdrawal of the DCO was made 'without sound reason, and exceptional circumstances have not been demonstrated'.
These included the likes of the Kent Wildlife Trust, Bugs Life, National Highways, Network Rail and a joint submission by Kent County Council, Dartford Borough Council and Ebbsfleet Development Corporation.
LRCH has also been told to pay costs to Merlin Entertainments, a rival theme park operator and the company behind the likes of Chessington World of Adventures and Thorpe Park. It had opposed the plans.
Now an Irish company called Landmarque Property Group has taken over managing the Northfleet Harbourside project.
Landmarque is owned by Sierra Investments, which was controlled by Mr al-Humaidi from 2018 to November 2023.
Ebbsfleet United, which is also controlled by al-Humaidi's family, is in partnership with Landmarque.
Gravesham council has said the development was being delivered 'in partnership between Landmarque and Ebbsfleet United'.
In a statement, NC1 said: 'This project has the support of the community, Gravesham council and Ebbsfleet United supporters. It is opposed by a small number of organisations with a commercial interest.
'We look forward to the planning inquiry and getting on with investing into the local community.'
COMMUNITY CONCERNS
Kent Invicta Chamber of Commerce fears the Northfleet Harbourside development could jeopardise over 40 companies that are already established on the site.
The director of CPP-LM, which has ran for nearly 50 years, said it could be the end of their manufacturing business.
Sam Youseman told The Times: 'Moving is a cost in the six figures. If we are forced too far away, our trained staff won't be able to move with us.
"The impact is massive. If we are facing a compulsory purchase order here, it is a potentially business-ending level of disruption."
The 35-year-old said a "functioning industrial estate" would at stake.
'I can't blame the developers for wanting to make money. But there is no reason their commercial interests should trump those of the companies who have been on this estate for years," he added.
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Kent Invicta Chamber of Commerce fears the Northfleet Harbourside development could jeopardise over 40 companies that are already established on the site
Credit: Gary Stone
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The director of CPP-LM, which has ran for nearly 50 years, said it could be the end of their manufacturing business
Credit: Gary Stone