North-east boat owners are going full steam ahead with plans to convert a disused toilet block into a clubhouse.
Rosehearty Sailing Club lodged proposals with Aberdeenshire Council to take on the village’s public convenience earlier this year, and have now been given notice that work can proceed.
The club hopes to be able to convert the toilets, off Shore Street, into a base of operations which will serve the community’s boat enthusiasts as both a workshop and meeting area.
Graham Souter, the club’s secretary, said the plans had been in place since 2014, when the local authority first agreed to sell the building to members for £1.
The toilets had been kept open prior to that by the efforts of local people.
And club member Peter Crawford said the move would open up the small boating group to the wider community.
Currently, members meet in the village’s Red Kirkie, a former church.
“The intention is that we’ll make the back third of it a workshop where we can service the boats in the winter,” he said.
“In the front we’ll have a cafe, and in the middle we’ll have a toilet and showers for people to use.
“This will give us somewhere to relax after the sailing with tea and coffee, and somewhere the kids can go.”
The toilet block is currently used as changing rooms for holiday makers using the village’s caravan park.
The facility, which houses nine conveniences and six showers, will now be gutted to make way for a fuel store, kitchen and
meeting area.
Two changing rooms and a workshop will also be created for club members.
