06 November 2007
Locals invited to Fraserburgh town extension fact-finding day
Locals in Fraserburgh are invited to an open day and consultation workshop on Thursday, November 15, 2007, to help inform their views on major proposals for the future expansion of Fraserburgh including plans to develop a site at Kirkton, south of Fraserburgh, as a new urban village.
Organised by Aberdeenshire Council in conjunction with property consultancy, Knight Frank, the fact-finding day at The Museum of Scottish Lighthouses in Fraserburgh, is part of the public consultation to allow interested residents, local businesses and community groups to find out more about the master plan to expand Fraserburgh further south and west around the current agricultural area at Kirkton and Smiddyhill, to help meet local demands for housing.
Aberdeenshire Council wish to consult upon a draft development framework for the long-term expansion of the town as proposed in the Aberdeenshire Local Plan, including a range of sites to the south and west of Fraserburgh.
The proposed development at Kirkton is set within this framework and is outlined in a draft Master Plan which includes up to 600 homes, the creation of a new community school and playing fields and provision of around 12 hectares for high-amenity employment use. The site will have a central core with a village/rural feel including the construction of a common community space such as a church or community hall, together with substantial open public space, cycle paths and a transport infrastructure including roads leading to major arterial routes into and out of Fraserburgh.
A drop-in day running from 9.30am until 4pm will allow people to speak to planners from Aberdeenshire Council and Knight Frank to find out more about the proposals, view illustrations of how the development could look, and consider the draft Master Plan for the area.
In the evening, a focussed workshop will take place from 7pm at the Musuem of Scottish Lighthouses where interested members of the community can hear from Council staff and Knight Frank on the potential proposals and discuss and debate the draft ideas for the proposed development.
Allan Rae, Planning Partner at the Aberdeen office of Knight Frank, said, “We want to hear the views of people living and working in Fraserburgh to find out whether the draft plans we have drawn up for the Kirkton site in the context of the brief set by Aberdeenshire Council are what they need, or if they have any concerns about.
“It is important that the community in Fraserburgh has an input to the proposals at an early stage and we can then take on board their thoughts and opinions as we refine the project.”
Aberdeenshire Council’s Banff and Buchan Area Committee Chairman, Mitchell Burnett, said, “This is very important for the town of Fraserburgh.
“There are so many young people in the town struggling to get houses, and we are very short of houses generally, so once this is up and going it should help to relieve the situation greatly.
“I think people should go along and take part in this consultation, that way they can feel they have some ownership of the project by being there, looking at it, discussing it and maybe contributing some good ideas.”
People in Fraserburgh are invited to attend an open day to find out more about the plans to expand Fraserburgh on Thursday, November 15, 2007 at The Museum of Scottish Lighthouses, Kinnaird Head, Fraserburgh between 9.30am and 4pm.
The workshop will take place later that evening at 7pm–9pm at the same venue.