Watered-down proposals for a hotel on the outskirts of Peterhead have been lodged with Aberdeenshire Council.
The Buchan Gateway scheme was approved two months ago, with plans to create a 70-room hotel and pub at the Invernettie roundabout.
However, developer Muir Construction Ltd has unveiled fresh designs which significantly scale back the venture.
The Inverness-based company is only intending to provide 38 rooms in the hotel which will be managed by Marston’s Inns and Taverns.
The amenity will form part of the brewing firm’s wider footprint on the site, with a pub also scheduled to be built.
The catering side of the development is expected to have parking for more than 100 visitors and include a second-floor living space for a landlord.
In total, it could create up to 45 jobs within the community.
But there have been concerns that the additions to the outskirts of the port will take people out of the town centre.
Local campaigner Stephen Calder, a former member of the defunct Peterhead community council, wrote a letter of objection to Aberdeenshire Council, claiming a a town-centre location would be preferable for the development.
He said: “I would suggest that locating, in particular, a licensed restaurant on the outskirts of the town would further adversely affect business within Peterhead town centre, and that it would be preferable to locate such a restaurant in the town centre.”
However, the local authority backed the scheme in principle.
The Buchan Gateway was first proposed in 2003, when developers envisaged the site as a location for shops, including a supermarket and a petrol station.
The Buchan Gateway will also feature two warehouses, measuring 40,000sq ft and 50,000sq ft for other food and retail units.
Muir Group’s agent, John Agnew, has estimated it could generate £50million investment for the local economy.
