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Center Parcs submits Borders holiday village plans

Center Parcs A computer generated view of how a Borders Center Parcs might look with a large glass building surrounded by trees with a few people milling aboutCenter Parcs
A Scottish Center Parcs could open near Hawick by 2029

Center Parcs has submitted the planning application for its first Scottish holiday village in the Borders.

The holiday village company says the development could attract more than 350,000 visitors a year to the site near Hawick.

Proposals were first unveiled for the multi-million pound development in November last year.

Plans have now been formally submitted to Scottish Borders Council (SBC) following a series of public consultation events.

Center Parcs A public consultation event with tables and displays of Center Parcs plans for the Borders with people looking them overCenter Parcs
A series of public consultations were held before the plans were submitted

Center Parcs currently attracts millions of visitors a year to its six sites across the UK and Ireland.

The development in the Borders - which it estimates would generate nearly £9m-a-year for the local economy - would be its first in Scotland.

The proposals would see hundreds of lodges constructed on the site at Huntlaw Farm near the A7.

If planning permission is secured, the company has said the village could open to the public as soon as 2029.

Farmland loss concerns

Four community consultation events were held before submitting the planning application.

Concerns have been voiced about the loss of usable farmland and also that visitors to the village might not venture into surrounding areas, prompting questions about the wider economic benefits for the Borders as a whole.

However, the company has said that many people who book three or four-night stays with them at other sites then go on to "explore the area as well".

The plans will now go before SBC for approval before they can make any further progress.