A NORTH-EAST town is on the verge of a population boom with revived plans for a 600-home village on its outskirts.
Developers want to create a major new settlement at Kirkton, at the southern edge of Fraserburgh.
The multimillion-pound development, which is expected to include a new primary school, health centre and other facilities, was first mooted seven years ago and was widely welcomed by locals.
Now, consultants Knight Frank are drawing up a new masterplan for the site, which will be used to fast-track planning applications for future stages of development.
As well as 600 new homes, around 10 acres of employment land is to be included in the design.
The earmarked greendfield site is to the south of Boothby Road and west of the A90 Fraserburgh to Peterhead route.
If successful, the land would be transformed into a vibrant new community to boost the Fraserburgh’s dwindling population of around 12,000 by about 10%.
The proposals will be unveiled to the public next month and residents will be asked for their views and ideas to help shape the development.
Knight Frank is working on the blueprint for landowners Kirkton Developments.
Senior planner Gary Purves said: “We’re now looking to bring forward a masterplan for the whole site, which will be our vision for how Fraserburgh can grow over the next 10 years and beyond.”
He said: “We think this will create a sustainable expansion of the town, because it will contain a mix of uses. For example, its not just housing, but also business land and land reserved for a school and health centre.”
He said some the residential part of the plan will include an element of affordable housing, which will go some way to meeting local demand.
“This should also enable people to live and work in the Broch, which should hopefully be a good thing for encouraging inward investment, such as more people to spend money in the town centre.”
The masterplan could be agreed by Aberdeenshire Council leaders by the end of the summer. After that, a detailed planning application for the first phase of the development – around 120 houses – will be submitted by local builder Colaren Properties.
Mr Purves added: “Its important to say that the plans are at an early stage and we are looking for local people to help us shape the vision for the future development of the town.”
Residents will get their first look at the new plans during an exhibition in the town’s Museum of Scottish Lighthouses on Wednesday, June 18.
When drawing up initial proposals for the development, designers drew inspiration from Poundbury, an experimental new village on the outskirts of Dorchester which has been designed around ideas by the Prince of Wales.
Many of the prince’s own theories were used in the Poundbury development, when both rented and privately-owned homes, shops, leisure facilities, schools, factories, workshops and offices were integrated against a backdrop of local, traditional architecture in interesting street patterns.
Fraserburgh’s Kirkton scheme will similarly concentrate on traditional architecture and create a community, village-style atmosphere.
The development is part of the long-running Fraserburgh Masterplan project which was launched more than a decade ago and was aimed at making the town a more attractive place to live and visit.
Last night, community councillor Mary Melville said the Kirkton plan had been well supported. “I think people here are very appreciated at getting this kind of investment and new housing being built near the town,” she said.