Isle of Man planners turn down bid to redevelop derelict hotel

Dandara's plans for the former golf links hotel have been turned down

A four-year planning saga over a derelict hotel in the south of the Isle of Man has ended after a bid to develop the site was rejected.

In 2017 developer Dandara proposed to modernise the former Castletown Golf Links Hotel at Langness, while adding 40 new apartments.

Earlier the island's planning committee turned the application down, criticising the scale and design.

Member Adrian Kermode said the plan was "apartments with a hotel bolted on".

Others on the committee agreed and added the design showed "no imagination" and had not tried to make the hotel "a destination" for visitors.

Made following several delays, the decision comes after a planning officer recommended the bid should be turned down due to its size, location and environmental impact.

'Important decision'

Closed since 2007, the former hotel's 56 bedrooms and dinning facilities have fallen into disrepair.

It sits next to the bird sanctuary on Fort Island and is surrounded by the Area of Special Scientific Interest, which covers the Langness Peninsula.

Dandara had wanted to rebuild a 40-bed hotel there, while adding 40 new flats, with a restaurant, leisure and spa facilities also included.

Residents of the nearby hamlet of Derbyhaven have opposed the developer's plans since they were first revealed four yeas ago.

Tim Cullen of the Derbyhaven Residents' Society said the committee had made an "important decision for the people of the island, for its wildlife, its heritage, and our much vaunted biosphere".