Aberdeenshire Council has announced plans to protect sports facilities across the region.
The local authority will revise policy to ensure any sports field that is turned over to development is replaced elsewhere.
It comes amid a dispute with rugby club Mackie Academy FPs, who were recently told to stop playing on the pitches at Redcloak, on the outskirts of Stonehaven, after 25 years – and just weeks before a national final.
Parts of the site are being sold off by land-holding firm Labinksi.
Now councillors have agreed to put procedures in place to ensure sports pitches are protected from future developments – by making sure they are replaced.
Stonehaven councillor Sarah Dickinson asked for a line to be included in the development plan to make it “explicit and clear” that developers would be expected to create replacement pitches if their plans mean existing ones need to be vacated.
She said: “Stonehaven has the second largest club in Scotland, the Mackie Academy Former Pupils Club.
“It is a significant and extremely successful contribution to sport scene and the council agenda on active living.
“The club has for many years leased land but it became clear recently that the pitches it leases won’t be available.”
She was backed by councillors Martin Ford and Colin Pike, who highlighted similar situations in Kintore and Portlethen.
It was agreed that the wording of Aberdeenshire’s open spaces policy would be amended to protect sports provision and assert the obligation on developers.
