Eden Project in talks over £60m Morecambe attraction

The Eden Project is exploring opening a tourist attraction worth around £60m at the site of Morecambe’s former Dome entertainment centre and Bubbles swimming pool.

Although at an early stage, the Eden Project is exploring viability and feasibility studies to open the development, which have been backed by Lancaster City Council, Lancaster University, and Lancashire County Council.

According to the Westmorland Gazette, the project has also been backed by both Morecambe and Lunesdale MP David Morris, and Northern Powerhouse minister Jake Berry, who said they were both working to secure Government funding for the scheme.

The Eden Project opened near St Austell in Cornwall in 2001 in a former clay pit and cost around £141m to build, supported by lottery funding alongside commercial loans, EU development funds, and private backing.

The company is also working on international projects in Australia, China, and the USA.

Although the scale of the Morecambe attraction will be smaller, Berry said the potential move was “a huge endorsement of the Northern Powerhouse”.

The Dome, built in the 1970s, was demolished in 2011 by the council, while the Bubbles complex, which opened in 1989, closed in 2001. Both are located on Morecambe’s seafront.