A historic granite gatehouse guarding the entrance to an Aberdeen park could be turned into a nursery.
The city council has applied for planning permission to repurpose the B-listed Gate Lodge, which was built in 1873 at the Polmuir Road entrance of Duthie Park, and add an extension.
The application describes the new structure as appearing to be a “separate pavilion” to the lodge.
Artist’s impressions and a design statement show it will have a contemporary design but act in “visual subservience” to the property.
This includes a flat roof, aluminium frame and brightly-coloured windows to give a “sense of playfulness.”
It is proposed that the extension will be used for the main activity base, while a reception, work area and kitchen will be housed in the existing building.
The nursery has been designed to encourage youngsters to play outdoors and offer them opportunities to use the wider Duthie Park.
The applications shows that the proposals have been reworked several times in order to better suit the area, with an initial suggestion to fell a “very substantial” mature tree later dropped.
It reads: “We contend that these proposals will not adversely impact the amenity of the park, instead they will bring back into use a historic building and give the area back a degree of vitality that it might not otherwise have had.”