Anger as Culloden housing scheme given approval

● Developer to create 16 homes near battlefield

Final approval has been given for 16 new homes on the edge of Culloden Battlefield.

Developers will move ahead with the construction after councillors voted through the design of the houses, which sit in a conservation area.

The contentious scheme at Viewhill Farm, to the nor theast of the core battlefield area and visitor centre, was given planning permission by the Scottish Government planning reporter in 2014.

Protests erupted against the development when Kirkwood Homes revived the plans last year.

But yesterday the design of the houses was approved by the Environment, Development and Infrastructure Committee at Highland Council by 12 votes to ten.

It was referred to them after an earlier vote became mired in confusion.

In March, two councillors on the south planning applications committee approved the plans by accident when they pressed the wrong button to cast their vote.

Conservative councillor Andrew Jar vie said it was “really quite gutting” that the designs had been approved when the plans should have originally been refused five votes to three in March.

He said: “It really is quite gutting that houses which fall so short of the criteria have been approved in such a sensitive area.

“So many people of all persuasions will be bitterly disappointed by the result today and how a mistake led to this outcome.

“I am really quite di sappointed, particularly with the councillors who pressed the wrong button at the start. This should have been refused, but because of a mistake we had to refer the matter. Now it has been approved.

“This should have been refused in March and we should have now been looking at a new design .”

Mr Jar vie said he did not believe the homes met the requirements set out for the conservation area, with new buildings to be constructed using traditional and natural materials.

He added :“Having some stone work on six of the 16 properties is not enough, in my opinion. These are just generic new homes.”

He said he was“very worried” about the protection offered by the Culloden Muir Conservation Area. It was introduced in 2015 following Scottish Government approval of the Viewhill Farm development to better protect the area around the battlefield.