Controversial plans for a new town in the Highlands are poised to get the final seal of approval later this week.
Planning permission in principle for 1,500 new homes at An Camas Mor, near Aviemore, was approved in March 2014.
But the developers have now applied to vary a condition of the plans which they say will allow for a more phased approach to the development.
Condition one, as approved, states that no development beyond 630 homes will take place until the developer completes a review of the impact of the development, up to that stage, on landscape and ecology.
But the developer wants to change the wording of the condition to allow a Site-wide Phasing Plan to be submitted instead.
Cairngorm National Park Authority’s (CNPA) planning committee will consider the application in Nethy Bridge on Friday and planners have recommended approval subject to “appropriate conditions”.
Gavin Miles, head of planning and communities at the CNPA, said: “There have been no significant changes to policy or circumstances since the planning permission in principle was granted in 2014, though we have better information on the potential impacts of people living in the new development on European Protected Sites and capercaillie.
“We consider the changes proposed by the applicant to be acceptable but are recommending a suite of conditions and other measures that will manage the development and require the applicant to prove there will not be any adverse effects to capercaillie in Badenoch and Strathspey as a result of the proposals before any development can start.”
A spokeswoman for An Camas Mor said it was “encouraged and pleased” by CNPA’s recommendation.
But a spokesman for Badenoch and Strathspey Conservation Group said that the “cherished and inspiring” landscape supporting vulnerable species and habitats is what the CNPA was set up to “safeguard rather than destroy”.
