Plans to build a caravan park on farm land at Mount Dee might have hit a snag, but there has been plenty of support for it.
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Big4 Holiday Parks, ‘Mr Maitland’ Milton Morris and former Maitland MP Robyn Parker all backed the project while land owner Bob Parsons tried to get it approved.
The holiday chain gave its blessing for the 87-site facility to be built at the intersection of Junction Street and Mount Dee Road, near Hunter V-Tec, as early as 2009.
Then NSW manager Steven Watson wrote a letter of support to Mr Parsons after spending a day at the site, and in Maitland assessing the city’s tourist attractions.
Maitland council thought Mount Dee Road would not handle the increased traffic, but Mr Watson said it was “more than acceptable”.
He said Maitland was missing out on ‘self-drive travellers’ and the growing baby boomers market because it did not have enough facilities to accommodate them.
“Caravans, RVs etc would in my opinion have no trouble using the road to the property, and in fact, is significantly better access than many parks in NSW,” he said.
The holiday chain did not share the flooding concerns that were raised by the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage, and the NSW SES.
Mr Watson said the park would be an opportunity to capture tourists who had come to events in the region, and provide more beds in the city.
“It would help in relieving the stress currently on accommodation providers in the region over events and weekends,” he said.
“I believe that a new holiday park in the Maitland shire would be an exciting thing and beneficial not only to the Shire but the entire caravanning industry.
“Parks act as a huge economic stimulus for the local economy as the tourists bring money into the shire adding to the recycled money spent by the locals.”
Mr Parsons’ plans for the park included plenty of cabins and sites for caravans, RVs and camping on a 14.8 hectare site that has views of some of Maitland’s most historic landmarks, and is close to the CBD.
His family has owned the land since the 1800s.