Aberdeen councillors have voted to defer their decision on plans for a new housing development for NHS staff – which officials had recommended they reject to protect trees.
NHS Grampian has tabled proposals to create 110 homes on the former nurses’ accommodation block at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, in partnership with the Grampian Housing Association.
The health board has struggled to recruit staff in the Granite City, with many put off by the high cost of living.
But a report to members of the council’s planning development management committee reads: “The development would by reason of its scale, siting, and quantum of development result in the loss of open space and urban green space.”
Yesterday the council’s planning committee met to make a decision about the future of the site.
Members raised a variety of concerns about the proposal but said they hoped the site would be developed.
Rosemount and Midstocket member Bill Cormie questioned why they had not been given a traffic assessment before making their decision.
Members voted by 15 to one to defer the decision until further information was available.
Last night, local resident Allan Rennie cautiously welcomed the committee’s decision.
He said: “I would rather it had been rejected because I believe that it is too much development for the site.
“But I firmly believe that there can be some sort of compromise reached.”
