A former quarry near Armathwaite could be transformed through the creation of a 40-lodge park.
Cumberland Council has received a planning application from Stephen Dixon, from Edenhall, to change the use of the area of agricultural land.
The site is Boaterby Quarry, Peter Gate Road, Cotehill, which covers a total area of 14 hectares.
As well as seeking consent for the lodges, the application is for associated tracks, 60 permeable car parking spaces and two spaces for light goods vehicles.
According to a planning document which was submitted in support of the application, the site is not in use as a quarry and is primarily used for livestock grazing.
Previously, Cumbria County Council had proposed that the “hole in the ground” be used as a landfill site and the statement adds: “At the time the access to the site was upgraded to highways standard to permit the access and egress of many vehicles based on this purpose.
“A decision was taken by the council after these works were complete not to proceed with the site as a public refuse tip. Since that time the land immediately surrounding has been grazed by livestock and the excavated area has naturally filled with water over time.
“The application seeks to create a park for lodges to be sited. The area is very peaceful, with great access, away from the main A6, and would add to the growing number of holiday lodges in the wider Cumbrian area, which is not yet at capacity in respect of demand.
“It would also bring much needed economic input to the locality through use of local public houses and other facilities, such as farm shops and visitor attractions.”
The lodges would be timber clad units and the site has what was described as “undulating contours” and a centrally located lake.
The site is surrounded on three sides by farmland and to the west is the access point to Peter Gate Road which provides a continuous boundary.
The report states: “The proposed development will introduce a lodge park and associated infrastructure on to the site.
“Parking and built infrastructure will introduce an engineered element into the landscape but this will only be visible from within the site.
“An assessment of the likely residual visual effects of the proposed development demonstrates that effects are localised and the location of the site benefits from its position with sparsely populated landscape and sloping contours falling away from Peter Gate Road.”
