Council throws out retirement village proposal

Developers accused of trying to use ‘backdoor means’

Ambitious plans for a retirement village beside Perth Airport have been rejected by councillors, who said developers were trying to gain permission “by backdoor means”.

Plans for a chalet complex were approved almost a decade ago for a site just north of the airport by the A94.

The blueprints, which were signed off in 2011, allowed for 52 holiday accommodation units in a field between the airport and Balbeggie.

Little has been done at the site, other than the formation of access from the busy main road in around 2014.

In May, developers Morris Leslie returned to council planners, asking to change the conditions on the site.

In a report the firm sent to Perth and Kinross Council, they stressed the benefits to elderly people of living in complexes like their A94 chalets, highlighting Scotland’s ageing population and the need to free up homes for younger families.

However, the plans, which featured no design changes, were rejected and dubbed as a “backdoor” method of achieving full planning permission.

The developers will still be able to proceed with the holiday park plans, which have been signed off, but suggested to council officers that this may no longer be viable.

Councillor Willie Wilson said: “I think this is quite clear. It isn’t just a matter of layout or design or roads. It’s a fundamental principle. This is trying to get a housing development by backdoor means, to be quite blunt.”