Up to 15 councillors in Aberdeen could miss a hearing on a £50million country club development plan for Aberdeen.
The proposals for Hazlehead are due to be scrutinised by elected members on Friday, November 14.
However, the date clashes with the SNP party conference in Perth, which takes place from November 13-15.
Nationalist councillor Bill Cormie, who sits on the local authority’s planning development management committee, has written to the council’s chief executive Angela Scott to voice his concerns.
The major application, tabled by local businessman Alan Massie’s property development firm Carlton Rock, is for two separate but linked sites in the west end.
The 250-bedroom hotel, country club and spa is earmarked for 13 acres of land between Countesswells Road and Hazledene Road that is currently used as a paddock for horses.
The second part of the site is the nine acre Hayfield Riding Centre, off Hazledene Road.
The proposal would constitute a departure from the city’s adopted local development plan, so requires a pre-determination hearing prior to a decision being made on planning permission in principle.
There are five SNP members on the planning committee, and a further 10 in the Nationalist group. All 43 elected members on the council have been invited to take part in the hearing.
Mr Cormie, ward member for Midstocket and Rosemount, said thousands of people, including local councillors, will have already made plans in advance for the SNP conference.
He said: “This is a crazy date to pick for this pre-determination hearing as it will inevitably reduce the amount of scrutiny that this planning application will receive.
“I hope they will think again on this and propose another date because it is utterly wrong to schedule these kinds of meetings at times that some councillors just will not be able to attend.”
Labour group secretary Willie Young said he did not think that the date should be changed, however.
“It is all about priorities. All those who receive an income from the council should be at all meetings, and I would be surprised if anyone put the SNP conference before a statutory meeting which they are supposed to attend.
“Of course, the public will read into that what they will.”