Green light for new 24-hour gym

A former retail centre will be transformed into a 24-hour gym under plans given the go-ahead by Angus Council.

The House of Angus building at Ethiebeaton Park, Monifieth, was home to retail outlets and a cafe but has lain vacant since shutting in 2018.

Health club chain Pure Gym is to move into the premises.

In a supporting document submitted by the developers, it was argued the gym proposals would “assist in safeguarding” the building’s future as an “established retail, leisure and visitor attraction”.

It was also outlined the 24/7 gym could operate “without detriment to the amenity of the area or adjacent occupants/ users”.

Gardening retailer Dobbies – which operates its own unit next door – owns the building and submitted the application to Angus Council in March.

A previous application had been lodged by Dobbies in September 2018, proposing to rebrand the building into an Edinburgh Woollen Mill destination centre.

The plans would have seen an investment of about £700,000, as well as the creation of up to 40 jobs, but the proposals failed to materialise and the unit remained vacant.

The House of Angus was first opened in 1999 and successfully took advantage of its strategic position off the A92.

The premises operated for 19 years as a department store retail unit until its closure.

It is situated at the Ethiebeaton Park, which is also home to a McDonald’s, Premier Inn, Brewer’s Fayre and a David Lloyd leisure complex.