Aberdeenshire Council has announced that it intends to name a north-east distillery as part of a new conservation zone.
Ardmore distillery and its surrounding buildings have been branded “unique in Aberdeenshire” by the local authority as a purpose-built, rural distillery which has been linked to the development of the Great North of Scotland Railway and the Leith Hall Estate.
There are currently 41 conservation areas across the region, from town centres such as Fraserburgh, to small villages including Cairnbulg and Inverallochy.
Ardmore, at Kennethmont in Huntly, would bring the council’s portfolio to 42. It would also put in place controls about how the site can be developed in the future, so that its character remains intact.
Last night, a spokesman for the local authority said its environment team would be taking forward the proposal to gauge public reaction.
It follows a consultation event last year and a review of the authority’s conservation zones earlier this year.
Aberdeenshire Council also announced it was carrying out reviews of all of its conservation areas to find if they were still necessary.
A spokesman said: “The development of these areas since the original designation is examined against the historical, cultural and architectural value of the area.”
The new consultation, available on the council’s website, invites members of the public to make comments on the plan.
Ardmore distillery was built in 1898 to benefit from the new rail links to Aberdeen and continues to produce whisky today.
In 2014, it launched the specially-brewed Ardmore Legacy malt.
That creation continues the distillery’s history of producing the only traditionally peated Highland single malt whisky and replaced Ardmore Traditional Cask as its core expression.
