Couple told to quit may take legal route
A man told he and his wife must vacate their Perthshire property after officials repeatedly refused to grant him retrospective consent for it has said he is considering taking them to court.
Peter Brown wants to stay in his house at Hillview in Kinloch, as well as continue to run his groundworks business from it, despite enforcement officers warning him he risks being fined tens of thousands of pounds if he does not leave.
Mr Brown says he bought the bungalow from a relative believing proper planning permission had been granted for it, and it was only after he started living there that he found out Perth and Kinross Council had only ever granted permission for a shed to be built on the site.
He has already lost several appeals to stay in the property, including one dismissed by the Scottish Government late last year, but this week he told the PA he is discussing the case again with his solicitor to see if he can take his fight to court.
He said: “The council wants me to turn it into a shed [but] we don’t have anywhere to go.
“They offered us a house in Bankfoot but they wanted me to rent that as well as a separate storage facility for my tools and I can’t afford to do that.
“I explained all this to them but then they said if I didn’t take the house I would be struck off the housing list.
“I’ve been stressed out ever since and my wife is scared someone is going to turn up at the door [to evict us].
“I spoke to my lawyer the other day about it. I probably could take it to court but I don’t know what the council will say.”
A PKC spokesperson told the PA:
“Council officers have been working with the residents and numerous offers of support have been made to protect and ensure their wellbeing is looked after during this process.
“Offers of accommodation that fully meet the household’s requirements have been made, however, these have been refused.
“We have also attempted to help find suitable business accommodation, but have received no response.
“We want to work with the residents during this process, which we accept is incredibly difficult for them, and make it as straightforward as possible - however, to do that successfully we need them to meaningfully engage with us during this process.
“Planning permission was granted for an agricultural shed and not a residential property on this site, which has been deemed not suitable for residential use in accordance with the local development plan.
“We have been through the full appeal and enforcement process in regards to the property and in each case the decision was with the council in regards to the suitability of the property.
“It is illegal not to comply with an enforcement notice that has been unsuccessfully appealed.”