A DECISION on opening the Osmington Mills Holidays site throughout the year will be made this week.

The Waterside Holiday Group say that with modern lodges having higher standards of insulation there is no reason why the site cannot be used at all times.

It is asking Dorset Council to allow the permanent use of the Mills Road site, rather than seasonal occupation. It currently has to close between January 15th and March 15th, a condition which dates back to June 1987.

The site has 68 cedar lodges and a five-bedroom boutique hotel together with a country club, bar, restaurant and a swimming pool complex

Dorset councillors will decide the application at an online area planning committee on Thursday.

The application has attracted more than a twenty letters of objection many saying that the respite for a few months from the additional traffic, light and noise is necessary for residents. Main said they fear the year-round use will only encourage the company to apply for more lodges in the future, or to convert or upgrade existing units to permanent homes.

Dorset Echo:

“Osmington Mills is packed with visitors throughout the holiday season, parking is a particular problem and some respite is desirable for residents—especially in winter when vegetation is sparse,” said one letter writer, warning “Please be crystal clear: allow this and the council will lose control of the situation, this site could become residential whether you like it or not.”

The site currently has just one lodge on the south east corner of the area without a restricted season, which was achieved on appeal in October 2016.

Said planning consultant for Waterside, Richard Burgess: “With the advent of year round tourism local planning authorities increasingly recognise that such conditions are inappropriate and I would suggest that no permission granted today for holiday accommodation would have such a condition imposed. In addition all modern lodges (and this is now an entirely cedar lodge park) enjoy high standards of thermal insulation and heating and so occupier comfort is no longer a consideration.”

Planning officers are not recommending any particular course of action and have put forward two positions for councillors to choose from – either for or against the proposal.