Park of Keir: Planning minister must reject application
Scottish Greens Mid Scotland and Fife MSP Mark Ruskell has called on the Scottish Government to throw out an unsuitable planning application for an area of greenbelt between Dunblane and Bridge of Allan that was controversially conditionally approved three years ago today (30 August).
Housing Minister Kevin Stewart granted conditional approval for the development of a hotel, mansions and sporting facilities on 30 August 2017 [1], but three years and more than a dozen deadlines later Stirling Council and the developer have still not finalised an agreement for the development to proceed.
Mr Ruskell has supported the community in their campaign to save Park of Keir for many years as a Councillor for the local area and now as MSP, including speaking on their behalf at a local public inquiry.
Mark Ruskell MSP said:
"The development of Park of Keir would destroy a huge swathe of precious greenbelt between Dunblane and Bridge of Allan, irrevocably changing the character of the area for the worse.
“Stirling Council and the Scottish Government’s own Planning Reporter rightly rejected these proposals, but those decisions were unilaterally overturned by Planning Minister Kevin Stewart. The whole process since then has been dogged by a lack of transparency and has simply dragged on too long. Three years of closed-door negotiations and missed deadlines and still the uncertainty remains.
“It’s time now for the Planning Minister to finally recognise that the community doesn’t want this development and that the developers can’t deliver on the promises they made years before the current economic crisis hit. Mr Stewart must finally bring an end to this saga, throw the application out and save Park of Keir.”