Welcome to Planning Ahead – our weekly round-up of the latest proposals across the north-east.
Our new instalment comes as the festive season enters full swing, with just one week until Christmas Day.
It’s a time for winding down and, for many, rewatching their favourite festive flicks…
And It’s a Wonderful Life for some in Old Aberdeen looking forward to a new Farmfoods, but opinion is split and it’s brought out the Grinch in others.
Meanwhile there’s A Nightmare Before Christmas for one Aboyne man who is facing a backlash over an unauthorised fence.
We hope to see our Die Hard followers back here for our December 25 round-up next week, now let’s start with someone who doesn’t want to leave their Home Alone.
Plans to demolish house to make way for new Deeside dream home
David Edgar, who lives near Banchory at Durris, wants to demolish his Greenways house to clear space for a modern replacement.
The detached home is at the foot of the Hill of Durris, and the owners say it’s had some unflattering upgrades over the years.
Architects describe it as a “rabbit warren of poorly lit, awkward, compromised and uncharacteristic rooms”.
They add: “The alterations have resulted in the house having some structural issues and
being very difficult to upgrade to make it more energy-effective.
“As time goes on, the owners are starting to see some serious defects with the alterations carried out on the property.”
And, with the work needed to fix it being “cost-prohibitive”, there’s only one thing for it.
The architects conclude: “It is believed that the best course of action would be to demolish the structure and build a replacement dwelling.”
Abandoned tennis court could be given new lease of life
A former tennis court left vacant for 30 years could be given a new lease of life as a rugby training pitch.
The facility at the corner of Hazlehead Avenue and Groats Road has been earmarked by the Aberdeen Wanderers rugby team.
Papers say the site, just across from the entrance to Hazlehead Park, would come with its own six floodlights for training in all conditions.
A new surface would be laid at the spot too.
Aberdeen Wanderers play nearby at Groats Road, with their pavilion just across from the old tennis courts.
Funfair boss lays plans for Rubislaw Den South mansion
The boss of Codona’s, the Aberdeen funfair responsible for the popular Christmas Village currently spreading joy in the city centre, wants to add an extension to his mansion.
John Codona lives at the six-bedroom 1 Rubislaw Den South, which was sold for £875,000 in 2017.
The 39-year-old is a director of the family firm, which was started in 1970.
Design images show the extension would be for a new open plan lounge, dining and kitchen area.
There would also be a patio built outside and a pergola used to shelter a BBQ.
Plea to remove broken lift from mansion on same street
Buying a mansion on Aberdeen’s Millionaire’s Row might sound like a dream come true, but it can come with its challenges.
Mary Galloway’s home at 64 Rubislaw Den South was bought for £800,000 in 2020.
But the luxury property came with one unusual, and unwanted, feature: a broken lift.
Architect Katrina Denholm describes this as the house having “fallen foul to modernisation in the 60s”.
She explains: “When the lift was installed, the hall was altered with part of the ceiling being dropped and an industrial style door installed to the lift at ground and first floor.”
This has left the kitchen in an “odd shape”.
Plans to make home ‘more suitable for modern living’
And she adds: “The lift is currently unusable, and the company who installed it is now no longer in existence.
“The lift at the moment means there is a large void in the first floor totally unusable, as the door will not open unless the lift is at first floor level.”
The new owner wants to make the B-listed property “more suitable for modern living”.
As well as removing the wonky lift to restore the hallway, they want to open up the lounge and kitchen to form an open plan area and install bifold doors to the garden.
The coal store would become a utility room, and “decaying” window frames would be replaced.
These plans come just days after a row over an extension at neighbouring Rubislaw Den North had to be settled by councillors.
Read our full report on the spat over the “Barcelona-inspired” addition here.
New plans for bright Lidl sign after failed bids in the past
The Lidl supermarket on Aberdeen’s King Street wants to install a new 6m tall illuminated sign at the shop.
Three previous attempts for something like this have been knocked back, with officials blasting the “visual clutter” and impact on the historic Old Aberdeen area.
But optimistic bosses insist such a sign would be “entirely appropriate” for the budget supermarket.
What do people make of Old Aberdeen Farmfoods plans?
A few yards away, some bigger changes could be in store.
Farmfoods wants to demolish an old barracks building to create a new rival supermarket.
Older residents back Farmfoods plans
Since the plans were lodged last month, locals have been making their thoughts known, with letters of support and objection to the council.
Robert Wyness, who lives in the Aulton Court high rise in Seaton, said it would be a “great asset to the community”, while Mr K Webster of Seaton Avenue hailed the “great use of a pretty much abandoned building”.
He added that it would “save the local community having to travel to get some nice food”, with his older neighbours “grateful” to see the plans emerge.
Evelyn Falconer, who lives on School Avenue, said: “Really supportive of this new development.
“As a pensioner who has no car, being able to access a Farmfoods close to home is positive for the local residents as far as I’m concerned.”
Why are some neighbours against the Farmfoods?
Mary Nicol disagreed about the need for the Farmfoods, what with the Lidl just a “one-minute walk away”.
The Lord Hay’s Grove resident lives just across from the site, and worries about traffic building up at the junction between Don Street and King Street.
She added: “This might impede traffic, including emergency vehicles, from entering or leaving Lord Hay’s Road.
“There will be noise of refrigeration running constantly as well as the arrival and departure of delivery vehicles. This will have a negative impact for those living nearby.”
‘It would be a disaster’
Her neighbour Joseph McNaught added: “There is not enough access as it is at the moment for emergency services without putting another supermarket at this location.
“This proposal would be a disaster and is not needed at this highly congested area.”
Another Lord Hay’s Grove resident, Terence Duffy, said: “We will all be impacted by the increase in traffic, particularly the HGV traffic.”
The local community council noted that traffic is a “particular concern”, and blasted the appearance of the supermarket as “absent of aesthetic detail or indeed any visual appeal whatsoever”.
Buchanhaven Pharmacy to install prescriptions machine
Samantha Reid from the Buchanhaven Pharmacy in Peterhead wants to install a prescription collection machine at the front window.
The Medpoint device will cut down on queuing in the shop, allowing visitors to collect their medicine whenever they want on a 24/7 basis.
Bed and breakfast owner faces backlash over new fence
Aboyne man Kit Chambers put up a new fence at his Tigh Na Geald bed and breakfast on Ballater Road this summer.
The villa is the family home of Mr Chambers and wife Julia, but also offers rooms from £90 per night.
By September, Aberdeenshire Council planning enforcement officers had got in touch to tell him it would need permission.
Since the plans were lodged, people have had the chance to comment on them…
Paul Gibb thinks it looks out of place in the conservation area, along a “prominent” site next to the busy A93 Aberdeen to Braemar road.
In a letter of objection, he fumed: “Tigh-Na-Geald, has an prominent and lengthy boundary facing onto Ballater Road and is visible from a significant proportion of the Aboyne Green.
“The addition of the fencing atop the granite wall has resulted in a considerable change of character in this treasured conservation area.”
He says the fence has effectively “doubled the height” of the wall, and wants it removed before other homeowners are motivated to do the same thing – and turn Ballater Road into a “wood-panelled corridor”.
‘This must be stopped’
Mr A Brodie, who lives on St Eunans Road, added: “As a local resident I know that many properties have already implemented high timber panelling on their boundary walls.
“This has, potentially, established an unfavorable precedent within the conservation area which must be stopped before further properties follow suit. ”
Mid Deeside Community Council agree that it must be dismantled.
Meanwhile the council’s own heritage team “appreciate” the desire of homeowner’s to shield their gardens from public view, but would prefer trees or shrubs be planted to provide “a natural screen”.
Should the family be allowed to keep their fence? Let us know in our comments section below
House plans only hope of salvation for Keithhall Church?
A few weeks ago, Planning Ahead revealed proposals to convert the old Portsoy Church into a huge home.
Since then, the fate of our region’s religious buildings has cropped up again and again in the headlines as the Church of Scotland strives to offload surplus property in an increasingly secular society.
Bourtie Parish Church near Oldmeldrum has closed, Peterhead’s iconic Muckle Kirk is up for sale and the massive Ruthrieston West Church in Aberdeen could be yours for £495,000.
Now the B-listed Keithhall Church near Inverurie, which dates back to 1772, could be altered into a home too.
The village was built around the old kirk, with the school following in 1873 and various houses popping up over the years.
But the final service took place in 2017, and fittings including stained glass windows have since been relocated to Fintray Church.
Archiects from McWilliam Lippe say new owner Colin Brown wants to change it “as little as possible” with his careful home conversion scheme.
They add: “Prior to the purchase of the building, it had been left vacant following the
Church of Scotland General Trustees’ decision to sell the property.
“The church had therefore lain largely empty since being vacated in 2017 and listed for sale in 2018.”
The designers say the “main principle” is to “ensure the continued use of a building that would otherwise quickly fall into (further) disrepair”.
Blueprints show how pews would be removed from the body of the kirk to form an open plan living area, with a kitchen, dining and living room – and even space for a pool table.
The seating area on the upper floor would be transformed into the master bedroom, while another two bedrooms would be formed on the ground floor.
A condition report details the need for repairs on several rotting areas of the venue.
However public access must be maintained to the cemetery, should the plans be approved.
Tullos EV charging station for lorries could be built
While we are in a rapidly changing world when it comes to religion, the same could be said for transport.
More and more EV charging areas are popping up amid a global shift away from fossil fuels.
And in the past week or so plans for a new petrol station with plenty designated EV charging spaces has been approved for Stonehaven, while a similar development is in the works at Stoneywood.
Now, the owners of Craigshaw Drive EV Ltd want to take things a step further: with an EV charging site for lorries at Tullos.
Within about 15 years, there are aims for every lorry making its way around the UK to be electric.
These Aberdeen developers want to get ahead of the game with a huge complex on the flattened site of former dairy buildings.
The Tullos EV charging station would be accompanied by a battery energy storage system, used to power the vehicles.
Why at Tullos?
The land is at Craigshaw Drive, in the West Tullos Industrial Estate
Papers sent to the council state: “The site is an excellent one for the proposed development.”
This is due to the neighbouring Kincorth Primary Substation, its place in the city’s road network and proximity to places such vehicles will often visit.
How will the Tullos EV charging site look?
Initial blueprints indicate there would be 28 spaces suitable for heavy goods vehicles at the four-acre station.
There are also 10 EV bus charging spaces, while it would come with offices and welfare units for the truckers themselves to recharge.
It was previously used by Muller for storing and distributing milk.
But the firm closed it in 2019, and the buildings were thereafter torn down.
And you can see this week’s plans for yourself here:
Plea to remove lift from historic home
Keithhall Church to become home
Tullos EV charging plans
Conversation