Blairgowrie house plan goes ahead
71 affordable properties approved
A major new housing development in Blairgowrie has been given the green light by the narrowest of margins.
Following a heated debate at a meeting of the newly re-named planning and development management committee at Perth and Kinross Council on Wednesday, full planning permission was granted for Stewart Milne Homes to build 71 affordable homes at Moyness Park off Blackthorn Place in the eastern Perthshire town.
A full public gallery turned out to see the decision being made, which ended up requiring convener Cllr Murray Lyle to use his casting vote as chair for approval after members’ initial vote was tied at five apiece.
The development is solely comprised of social, or ‘affordable’, units and concerns were raised over the density of the site itself, which will cover around 1.6 hectares of ground in the south-western area of Blairgowrie.
The waiting list for social housing in the Blairgowrie currently sits at more than 300 people.
Planning officers at the council had received a whopping 103 letters of objection from the public prior to the application being considered, with concerns ranging from a perceived over-development of the site, lack of open space in the proposed development, lack of parking places, noise pollution, inadequate employment available in the area, anti-social behaviour, and the proportion of affordable housing proposed being too high.
The meeting took a dramatic turn when a member of the public was effectively thrown out of the chamber in the middle of making his deputation to the committee.
The man, referred to in the chamber as Mr Kemp, addressed elected members and said: “I object to this planning application - the proposal has 100 per cent affordable housing and I accept the need for social housing and I agree with the concept of integration, but this is not integration, it is concentration.
“We should create a vibrant and successful area with a positive image locally, but this is not a positive image, this will be an estate like no other in Blairgowrie and a throwback to the ‘60s and ‘70s when it was ‘build as many as you can and to hell with the consequences’.
“These plans are not acceptable to the community and most importantly not acceptable to the people, it puts in mind the word ghetto.”
At this point convener Cllr Lyle stopped Mr Kemp’s speech and said he was not prepared to have the word “ghetto” used in the debate, and said the committee would not listen to any more.
When Mr Kemp refused to stand down, he was asked to leave the meeting and escorted out of the council chambers by council staff.
Further objections were shared from members of the public at the meeting.
Wendy McKerchar said the site was too dense and would be “wall to wall Blackthorn Place in Blairgowrie concrete”.
She declared: “I want to raise issues over density. You are comparing this application to major developments in Blairgowrie, and to Muirton Park in Perth.”
She added: “We recognise the need to provide these homes, but there is a better opportunity to provide them at Maple Place, why over-develop this site? I urge you to refuse this on overdevelopment.”
Comments were also expressed by Blairgowrie and Glens Councillor Caroline Shiers, echoing the voices of the people from the town.
The report presented to the elected members read: “Overall [the application] is considered competent and compliant with the key principles of the LDP [local development plan] and is recommended for approval.
“Account has been given to the matters raised in representation and these have been addressed in the appraisal.
“There are no material considerations present however that warrants a refusal of the proposal.”
The vote came down to a tie when Cllr Lyle, Cllr Bob Band, Cllr Eric Drysdale, Cllr Tom Gray and Cllr Richard Watters voted to approve the plans, while Cllr Bob Brawn – who represents the Blairgowrie and Glens ward – Cllr Mike Barnacle, Cllr Harry Coates, Cllr Ian James and Cllr Willie Wilson opted to reject the paper.
The casting vote was given to the committee convener and the plans will now go ahead subject to a building warrant application being granted.