Olympic chief to raise funds for £2bn Kent theme park
A London 2012 director who helped raise cash for the Games has been given the job of getting a £2bn British rival to Disneyland off the ground in Kent.
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Chris Townsend was commercial director at London 2012 organiser Locog.
He now has the same role at London Resort Company Holdings who want to build a £2bn theme park in Kent for Paramount Pictures.
Townsend will start talks with City investors this week to raise funding for the project on an 872-acre site on the Swanscombe peninsula near Ebbsfleet which is scheduled to open in 2018.
He told the Standard: “Post-Olympics it’s probably going to be the country’s biggest and most exciting regeneration project. The UK doesn’t have a destination on this scale and the closest to us is Eurodisney in Paris.
“There’s real support at a local level and a lot of interest from potential investors. I’m confident that this stands a very good chance of happening but it is a tough market.
“The UK needs big regeneration projects to kick-start the economy and this will be a substantial tourism destination not just for the UK but for Europeans.”
He said most funding would be in place next year, triggering a planning application.
Development vehicle London Resort Company Holdings has been set up by Brookfield Multiplex, Development Securities and current land owner Lafarge.