Roger Gawn’s plans to build TV and film studio at Tattersett Business Park given permission to create £50million project on same plot as tyre mountain
A millionaire’s dreams of opening a film and TV studio have been given the go-ahead despite frustrations over a controversial tyre mountain on the same plot.
Roger Gawn wants to construct the new facility at Tatersett Business Park, a sprawling site located on a former RAF base.
He has been granted permission to pursue the £50m project by North Norfolk District Council, provided he can address the issue of water pollution that will be caused by the scheme.
He says it has the potential to create 600 jobs and it will boost the local economy by capitalising on the burgeoning industry in Norfolk, which in recent years has provided the backdrop to a number of successful films and TV shows.
However, despite promising in 2009 that he will remove millions of used tyres from his site – which are left in a big pile not far from where the film studio will operate – he so far has only got rid of a third of the collection.
It is feared the used rubber could pose a serious safety risk if it was to catch fire.
It prompted calls from councillor Andrew Brown, cabinet member for planning, to wonder if the council could force Mr Gawn to “get a shimmy on and clear his tyredom.”
He added: “If this council had a policy that said no new development could take place within 1000m of a safety hazard, this would not see the light of day. However, luckily for the developer, we do not.”
But despite these concerns, councillors were told the tyre mountain is a separate issue.
The scheme went on to be approved unanimously, with councillors praising the growth it could bring to the local economy and the jobs it would create.
Mr Gawn said the film studio offers an “unmissable opportunity” to create a facility that will provide “high-quality jobs in a rural environment”.