AN APPLICATION for holiday letting accommodation at Roadford Lake was given the green light by Torridge District Council's Plans Comm­ittee last Thursday (December 4).

The plans, submitted by Peninsula Properties (Exeter) Ltd, includes holiday letting accommodation comprising up to 98 bedspaces on land adjacent to the Lakeside Conference Centre.

The application also sought permission for a 'core building' (including management office space, two bedspaces for staff accommodation and limited retail facilities), associated landscaping, car parking and access arrangements, pontoon/ferry link to the angling and watersports centre and outline sewage arrangements.

A similar application for tourist accommodation at Higher Goodacre on the opposite bank to the Lakeside Centre, was refused in December last year as it dealt "inadequately with the ecological importance of the site."

However, for the current proposal councillors voted in favour of the case officer's recommendation for approval, subject to the completion of a Section 106 agreement, because "the proposal is considered to be an acceptable small scale tourism development that, in principle, complies with relevant tourist policies of the development plan and which would not unreasonably impact on the highway network, nature conservation interests and archaeological interests and the landscape within which the proposal is set (subject to mitigation) neighbouring land uses (including the water supply function of the reservoir/lake) and neighbours."

The Section 106 agreement will secure the provision of a 'ring and ride' boat ferry service from the new pontoon at the Lakeside Centre to the Lower Goodacre Water Sports Centre; provision of public access to the on-site retail shop; the establishment of a management company to operate, manage and maintain the ancillary shop, reception office, new footpaths, foot­path/cycleways, pontoon and associated 'ring and ride' ferry service and the drainage facilities; the making of a capital contribution to South West Lakes Trust towards the improvement of its toilets and changing room facilities at Lower Goodacre Water Sports Centre; the holiday accommodation shall not be sold or let as timeshare or syndicate owned holiday units; the carrying out of an ecological survey and the carrying out of an assessment of the likely hydrological impacts of the development.