Tuesday December 9th 2025
The A7 trunk road passes through Selkirk.
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Paul Kelly
The people of Selkirk must not pay the price for the “unintended consequences” of a £450m holiday village on their doorstep, a senior councillor has warned.
Center Parcs was given the green light this week by Scottish Borders Council for the village to the east of the A7 trunk road between Hawick and Selkirk.
The year-round family destination will cost around £450m to construct and will create jobs for over 1,200 people and opportunities for local suppliers and businesses across the south of Scotland.
Selkirkshire Conservative Councillor Leagh Douglas has welcomed the huge opportunities the development brings, but warned that its implementation must be carefully addressed to ensure the people she represents are not disadvantaged.
She has revisited the issue of the potential for an A7 bypass as a method of tackling the major transport pressures the new development will bring.
Speaking after the decision, Councillor Douglas, SBC’s executive member for Finance, IT and Corporate Performance, said: “This is one of the largest inward investments the Scottish Borders has ever considered, and I fully welcome the projected benefits in terms of employment and economic activity.
“But throughout the entire process, my priority has been, and remains, the people of Selkirkshire. Our communities in Selkirk, Ashkirk, Lilliesleaf, rurally and along the A7 corridor must not be left carrying the weight of unintended consequences from a development of this scale.
“One of my strongest concerns is the traffic swell expected on change-over days, with almost 4,000 additional vehicle movements and peak hours of over 600 cars. Selkirk already experiences well-known pinch points, with narrow pavements, tight bends, school traffic and complex movement patterns around the town centre.
“Any further pressure must be managed extremely carefully. This is not about theoretical modelling, it’s about the real lived experience of residents who already feel congestion in very constrained areas.”
She added: “And we must look beyond Center Parcs alone. The cumulative impact of other large-scale developments and proposals, including the Cross Borders pylons, the Todrig planting and wind-related schemes, and ongoing forestry activity, will place simultaneous pressures on the very same rural road network. Taken together, this represents a level of traffic and infrastructure demand that must be monitored and planned for with absolute seriousness.”
Councillor Douglas said that the combined pressures on the A7 now require renewed national attention, adding: “In light of the cumulative pressures emerging on the A7 corridor, including Center Parcs, the pylon proposals, forestry, windfarms and other major land-use developments, I believe it is time for the long-discussed A7 bypass to return to serious national consideration.
“Residents know how constrained this route already is, and a strategic solution will be essential if these pressures continue to build.”
She emphasised the need for joint action across agencies: “I will continue pressing across the board, so we best prepare for the cumulative impact of all major projects currently emerging in this part of the Borders.
“At the same time, the pressures on housing and the already-tight local labour market cannot be ignored. We need to continue to focus heavily on a co-ordinated approach so that jobs created here do not unintentionally destabilise existing employers and essential services.”
She concluded: “If we get this right, we can welcome Center Parcs as a partner that helps the whole region thrive, as opposed to one that thrives at the expense of the communities around it.”
Center Parcs Scottish Borders will see the company plant a forest for the first time, carefully selecting complementary and native species to create a thriving woodland.
The village will feature up to 700 lodges and apartments, the iconic Subtropical Swimming Paradise, a Village Centre with shops and restaurants, and the signature Aqua Sana Forest Spa – a tranquil retreat nestled in a natural setting.
Other key features of the proposal include two newly created lochs designed for water sports and recreation, a combined Nature and Heritage Centre with, wildflower meadows, nature trails, and wetlands to promote biodiversity as well as a wide range of outdoor activities, integrated sympathetically into the landscape.
It will be Center Parcs’ first new village since the opening of Longford Forest in Ireland in 2019.
The South of Scotland Destination Alliance’s chief executive David Hope-Jones has added his voice welcoming approval of the development, saying: ” It is a huge endorsement of our region’s fast-growing reputation as a year-round destination. The development will attract new visitors to the Scottish Borders, create 1,200 new permanent year-round jobs and allow us to tell our story as a destination loudly and proudly.
“Our South of Scotland 2024-34 Responsible Tourism Strategy aims to increase the number of jobs in our visitor economy by 6,000 over the next decade and this one proposed development has the potential to achieve 20 per cent of this ten-year regional target.
“We represent 750 tourism and hospitality businesses across the South of Scotland and welcome this investment in our economy, but most importantly we want to ensure that this development is embedded sensitively within our visitor economy, encouraging people to spend more, explore further and stay longer. It’s all about trying to spread the economic benefits to as many existing businesses and communities across the south of Scotland as possible.
“We look forward to working closely with Center Parcs and building a fruitful partnership together in the coming months and years.”
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