700 home development was given in-principle permission in heated planning meeting.
The depute provost of Perth and Kinross has called on a housebuilder and community groups in Scone to bury the hatchet over a highly-controversial plan to build hundreds of houses north of the village.
Defending the council’s recent decision to grant A&J Stephen ‘in principle’ permission to build up to 700 new homes at Scone North, Councillor Willie Wilson has said the company must now engage in “meaningful consultation” with the community to address a multitude of concerns raised about the scheme.
Fears the development will lead to increased levels of congestion and pollution in the village and an increased risk of flooding – as well as concerns for wildlife and ancient woodland – were all aired during the public consultation on the application, which attracted more than 900 local objections.
Stressing the ball is now “firmly in their court” Councillor Wilson said he hopes A&J Stephen would “fully engage” with Scone and District Community Council, as well as the Scone Study Group, and address all their concerns as it prepares an application for detailed planning permission.
“The approval of the planning application for the major housing development at Scone represents a real challenge for the developers of the project,” he said.
“A&J Stephen now has planning permission in principle for their proposals. As a developer they need to step up to the plate and fully engage with the local community at the detailed planning stage.
“The ball is firmly in their court and they can, if they wish, have real and meaningful consultation.
“Scone and District Community Council and the local action group have shown tremendous energy and involvement in the planning process so far and deserve to be fully involved in the next stage.
“This has not been an easy task but things can improve from here on in if there is a genuine desire for all parties to work together.”
Addressing the continuing controversy over the decision to grant A & J Stephen in principle permission for the scheme, Councillor Wilson went on to suggest that an even more “unsatisfactory outcome” could have prevailed had the council denied permission.
“I fully understand that many local folk will be unhappy with the decision to approve the application,” he said.
“The [development management] committee, however, had a stark choice between approving the application with all the recommended conditions plus an additional one which I tabled to limit the number of houses built or to risk a delay that would have inevitably led to an appeal from the developer on non-determination grounds and the decision taken by a [Scottish Government] reporter.
“I was resolved not to allow that to happen as from lengthy past experience I feel strongly that it is vital to retain control of this planning application within the council.
“Experience of previous applications shows that handing decisions over to the reporter can lead to unsatisfactory outcomes. In this case there was a high risk that many of the carefully drafted conditions would be lost if an external reporter were to be involved.
“The local community contributed significantly towards the formulation of these conditions and I personally regard this as being of very high value.”
Article originally published by Daily Record
