Work to create a two-storey drive-thru restaurant on the Portlethen Retail Park will soon begin.
Fast food giant McDonald’s is behind the plan, which was given approval by Aberdeenshire Council in June last year.
The proposals are part of an application that has already seen a six-pump petrol station and click-and-collect lockers created on the site.
Asda finished an upgrade to its petrol station after a three-month closure in July but work has yet to start on the fast food restaurant.
The chairman of the Portlethen and District Community Council, Ron Sharp, said: “I thought work would have started on the McDonald’s by now.
“Originally I believe they said work would be finished by the end of the year but with the petrol station work it has obviously not happened yet.
“There are mixed feelings about this in the community.
“There are concerns about litter and the noise it could cause at night with a lot of teenagers potentially hanging about but we do have people who like the idea of having this type of restaurant available on our doorstep.”
A spokeswoman for McDonald’s said work would now start “in early 2019”.
A number of objections were submitted to Aberdeenshire Council when the plans were first unveiled, with management at the nearby Matalan store claiming the McDonald’s restaurant would exacerbate the area’s gull problem.
It is currently served by a number of food establishments including Dominos, Ashvale and Subway.
Work on McDonald’s drive-thru at Portlethen to start this year
Mr Sharp added: “We have had assurances that McDonald’s is a business that looks after litter concerns and they send out their own teams to pick up and sort out any mess.
“I do think the McDonald’s will be a welcome job boost in the area, especially with Homebase closing in Portlethen.”