Tennis court to be built in grounds of north-east hotel ravaged by blaze

A tennis court will be built in the grounds of a soon-to-be demolished hotel.

Holiday lodges at the Glen Lui Hotel in Ballater were ravaged by a fire in January, with firefighters working throughout the night to quell the flames.

Graham Wood – son of billionaire oil entrepreneur Sir Ian Wood – owns the building along with his wife Gillian.

But rather than restore the site to its former glory, a venture they said would cost in the region of £5.25 million, they decided to abandon the hotel trade in the area.

Now Graham Mitchell Architects, on behalf of the family, has applied for permission to create a private tennis court and garage by the new home.

Aberdeenshire Council approved the proposals this week.

Planning documents state: “This proposal would remove the existing bungalow on site and erect a triple garage in its place.

“This application would also see the formation of a 30m X 15m tennis court to the
north west of the proposed garage. The court would be surfaced with artificial grass or a
similar material.”

Earlier this year, Mr Wood told the Press and Journal about his plans to settle down in the Deeside community.

He said: “As a family, we love Ballater and we spend an increasing amount of time in the town.

“The opportunity to build a family home on the site of the former Glen Lui hotel means we can create a building which is both sympathetic to the location and the architectural integrity of Royal Deeside.”