Torquay big wheel will keep on turning

Councillors decide benefits outweigh harm

Torquay’s seafront big wheel will turn again this summer after councillors decided it does more good than harm.

Planning officers had advised members of Torbay Council's planning committee to say no to the wheel, which has been part of the seafront scene for the past 12 summers.

They said the harm it did to the heritage assets around its base next to the Princess Theatre had begun to outweigh the advantages of having it there.

But councillors heard that the wheel had become one of the resort’s crucial summer attractions, and its fame had spread worldwide. After a long debate they decided to give operators Mellors permission to erect the 45-metre wheel - larger than last year’s 33-metre version - for the summer season.

They will also hand the council another £30,000 to be spent on improvements to Princess Gardens, having made similar contributions over the years.

Cllr Jackie Thomas (Con, Kings Ash) said the wheel had become iconic. “It is seen worldwide on social media,” she said. “The image is used in all our marketing.

“If we are to keep our place as one of the UK’s premier resorts, we have to ensure that we continue to deliver what our four million visitors have come to expect.”

And the council’s deputy leader Chris Lewis (Con, Preston) added: “Sometimes planning is about common sense, and common sense should prevail with this application.”

Members heard that attractions like the wheel were vital to the bay’s £500million-a-year tourist trade, but there were also arguments that the "alien and intrusive" structure spoiled the tranquility of the gardens around it, which are also home to a historic fountain and the town’s war memorial.

The nine members of the committee spent almost an hour trying to measure how much accumulated harm it would take over the course of 12 years to tip the balance against the benefits of having the wheel.

Planning officers told them the time was coming when the amount of harm caused by having the structure in the gardens would outweigh the benefits of the mitigation money paid by Mellors.

But council leader David Thomas (Con, Preston) said having the wheel was a ‘win-win’ for the bay.

“It’s a win for our tourism industry and the thousands of people who will use the wheel and post thousands of photographs on social media, and it is also a win for our heritage, with another £30,000 injection to enhance a heritage asset.”

And Cllr Nick Pentney (Lib Dem, Tormohun) insisted: “In all the years I have been a councillor I have never had a single constituent come to me and say their enjoyment of the rich heritage of the area had been harmed by the wheel.”

The committee voted unanimously to support the return of the wheel for the 2024 summer season.