A Greek food hut will remain in an Aberdeen park despite fears it could pose a risk to the historic Westburn House yards away.
Lefki Christodoulo and her business partner Spiros have successfully run the Golden Grill street food van at the Bridge of Don Industrial Estate for the last two years.
They recently sought to expand with a new unit in the heart of Westburn Park.
The hut was set up just five meters away from the mid-19th century A-listed Westburn House late last year.
The historic house, designed by Archibald Simpson, is currently in a state of disrepair and has been on the Buildings at Risk Register since 2004.
Locals, and the charity formed to save the crumbling landmark, fought to prevent the food hut taking up permanent residence next door.
Food hut ‘would help to highlight Westburn House’
The duo’s application went before the local authority’s planning committee on Thursday.
Lefki explained that the idea to expand the business came from their customers – who had asked them to open a more central location in the city.
The pair believe that the new Westburn Park site will cater to visitors, nearby residents and even hospital staff.
Lefki told the committee that they had looked at other locations but claimed this was their best option.
They believe it will attract more people to the popular city centre space while highlighting the importance of Westburn House.
She said the permission would give the duo momentum to look at opening a permanent cafe that will “generate more life in the area”.
The business partners said they were also keen to work with the council to provide a further boost to the park by organising fundraising activities for Westburn House.
‘We should be trying to save this building, not put it at further risk’
But the plan came in for a grilling…
Five residents wrote to the council objecting.
One local, Laura Muir, said the catering unit was a “danger” to the historic house.
She said: “If this container has a fire then the whole of Westburn House could be destroyed and lost forever.
“We should be trying to save this building, not put it at further risk by allowing a high risk catering trailer to be sited next to it.”
Meanwhile there were worries that the unit’s gas canisters are not stored securely and could be a target for vandals.
Westburn Development Trust also railed against the plans.
The group was formed to save the storied building “before it’s lost forever”, ultimately hoping to revive it as a cafe and heritage centre.
Trustee Alasdair Stevenson said the truck would impact on the historic character of the area.
Meanwhile, Historic Environment Scotland asked for the food hut to be moved to another location within the park as they believed its current site “masks and obscures” the porch of Westburn House.
What did councillors have to say about the food hut?
At Thursday’s meeting, councillor Kairin van Sweeden asked if the duo had any plans to control litter around the unit.
In response, Lefki explained that staff would pick up any rubbish that would be thrown away.
Despite the backlash to the plans, the committee unanimously agreed to approve the duo’s application.
Lefki and Spiros plan on adding timber cladding outside the unit to enhance the look of the takeaway before it officially opens for business.
You can watch the planning meeting here.
Conversation