New dates have been set for an appeal hearing to decide whether a major housing development goes ahead in Nairn.
A Scottish Government reporter will hear evidence on June 9-11 at the town’s community and arts centre amid local concerns about traffic and general infrastructure issues associated with the proposal for 319 new homes off Cawdor Road on the south side of Nairn.
The hearing was postponed last month because of a late submission of revised transport data by the developers.
A consortium of Scotia Homes, Barratt North East Scotland and Robertson Homes were told that inquiry reporter Iain Urquhart delayed the hearing because he was concerned that the lateness of documents left residents insufficient time to digest the detail.
The house builders’ ambitions were approved by Highland Council’s south planning committee last summer.
However, an embarrassing error by the authority’s planning officials, in which the views of two community councils were misrepresented, led to the application being called in by the full region-wide planning committee. After a site visit by committee members, the proposal was thrown out prompting an appeal from the consortium.
Objectors have complained in large numbers that the scale of the proposed development would overwhelm local roads and other infrastructure.
Many residents also feel that a Nairn bypass should be in place before such scale of housing is consented.