Plans to build another 400 homes as part of an ongoing development in an Aberdeenshire town have been lodged.
Bancon Group is seeking approval from Aberdeenshire Council for the Lochside of Leys master plan at Hill of Banchory.
The proposals will be split across three sites on the land, which is situated at the east end of the Deeside town, and will be delivered in three phases.
Some 345 houses are planned for two locations on either side of the Loch of Leys nature conservation site, and another 50 in the Upper Lochton area, off Raemoir Road.
A new road between Raemoir Road and the North Deeside Road also forms part of the scheme, as well as shops, a football pitch, and a park and ride site.
An Aberdeenshire Council report on the project has described it as a “sympathetic expansion of Banchory” which will not affect the River Dee – a Scottish Natural Heritage special area of conservation.
It adds: “Development of this site will have to be undertaken sensitively to protect the qualifying interests of the site: existing woodlands areas, (the) Burn of Bennie, (the) River Dee and adjacent Loch of Leys.
“There has been a design-led approach undertaken as well as a level of community engagement thus far.”
The report, which has been prepared for councillors on the Marr area committee, adds that issues raised by consultees during the planning process in relation to flooding and tree loss have been “resolved”.
Councillors will consider the plans when they meet on Tuesday.
A spokesman for Bancon added: “There are significant areas of high biodiversity value and wildlife habitats, including the Loch of Leys nature conservation site, which splits the areas in two.
“These must be protected, and enhanced where possible, as part of the development area.”
Development at the Hill of Banchory has led to a surge in the town’s population from 6,034 in 2001 to more than 8,000 in 2012.