Eden says “thank you Cornwall” as councils support the Edge
The Eden Project today expressed its public thanks the councils of Cornwall for their rock-solid support of its bid to bring £50 million to the county.
Last week a full meeting of Cornwall County Council voted overwhelmingly in favour of supporting the Edge, Eden’s next phase. This follows support from all the district councils in Cornwall.
The Edge will be the last great building in the former china clay pit at Bodelva and will put Cornwall at the forefront of environmental awareness. Eden is one of six projects currently competing in the Big Lottery Fund’s: The People’s £50 Million Contest.
Eden is the only project in Cornwall and Devon in the running. A final shortlist is due to be announced this month (October) and then in December a public vote will decide who wins the £50 million prize.
Eden’s chief executive Tim Smit said today: “It is absolutely cracking to see Team Cornwall come out so solidly in support of the Edge. This follows the long and great support for Eden which saw it being built in the first place.
“We are delighted and humbled by the very public support of the county council in their motion last week as indeed we were by the support we have had from all the presentations we have made to the district councils.”
He added: “Cornwall is a really special place and if we can harness that goodwill for one final push in December to bring home the Edge to its Cornish home, it will represent the final piece in the Eden jigsaw.”
The County Council motion was put forward by Councillor Eric Brooke, Executive Member for Community Services. He said: “We hope to publicise the project and the time and date of the vote on ITV as widely as possible. This will include on the County Council website, in public places and internally to our staff.”
The council agreed that Eden contributes positively to the reputation and economy of Cornwall and the Edge would be “a great addition to Eden.”
