FLAMINGO Land has lodged a bid to create a botanic garden and roller coaster on the site of the former Futurist theatre.

Scarborough Borough Council has announced that the theme park company has its eyes set on developing the site of the resort's famous theatre, which closed in January after years of uncertainty.

Flamingo Land, between Malton and Pickering, is Yorkshire's largest visitor attraction and is proposing to create Flamingo Land Coast.

Details of its bid were released in a report to Scarborough Borough Council’s cabinet and reveals it intends to create a development based around three environments with subterranean, coastline and sky theme.

It would include a glass-roofed botanical garden, a roller coaster, a 55m lighthouse structure and “Space Shot Tower” which propels customers 55 metres into the sky.

The site, overlooking Scarborough’s south bay, would also include an elevated sea view bar, restaurant and function space, walk-through aviary and new town square.

The company behind the plans were previously kept secret and was referred to as “bidder B”. But following public concerns about the credibility of any bidder being able to deliver such an ambitious seafront visitor attraction, Flamingo Land was revealed as the applicant.

The company is partnering with the Yorkshire-based property development company GMI Estates for the project.

Derek Bastiman, Scarborough Borough Council cabinet member for strategic planning and regeneration said plans were still “very much in their infancy”

“We’re delighted that we’ve been able to announce Flamingo Land and GMI as the identity behind bidder B,” he said.

"In Flamingo Land, we have a partner with the ability to deliver and drive up public confidence in the project.

“It is important to stress however that the plans are very much in their infancy and there are many, many months of negotiations and formal processes to go through before construction can be guaranteed. What we do already have though is a very strong commitment and dedication from Flamingo Land’s team to work in partnership with us and GMI to progress this important project for the Borough.”

Flamingo Land’s chief executive, Gordon Gibb, said: “Scarborough is my home town so it gives me great pleasure, both personally and on behalf of Flamingo Land Limited, to be associated with developing a major visitor attraction on the old Futurist site”.