It’s time for Planning Ahead – a round-up of the latest proposals lodged across Inverness.
A historic hotel-pub’s transformation into a luxury hotel and wellness centre has been approved.
More letters of objection and support have come in for the plan to bring a community sauna to a public park.
And a major housing development on the outskirts of the Highland capital is ready to move forward.
But first, let’s take a look at plans for a former care home in Dalneigh.
Care home demolition plan
What’s left of a former care home looks set to be demolished.
Manda Construction was refused permission to create two new homes on the former Fairfield Nursing Home site on Fairfield Road in 2023.
The Care Inspectorate served the home with an improvement notice in 2018. It closed shortly after.
Since then, several plans for the site have worked their way through the council’s planning system.
Its 2023 one, to build two three-bedroom semi-detached homes, was rejected because it would have a detrimental effect on “community amenity”.
Before that, an application in 2020 to convert it into a hotel with 32 bedrooms was rejected.
Local residents had objected, citing fears about pedestrian safety and a lack of parking nearby.
An application to partially demolish the site was approved in 2022.
Now Manda Construction has applied for permission to demolish the rest of the two buildings that remain.
Ardersier hotel’s transformation
A historic Ardersier hotel-pub’s transformation into a luxury hotel and wellness centre has been approved.
The Gun Lodge Hotel on the village’s High Street has been closed for about a year while new owners Shamrock Wellbeing lodged new plans to give the hotel a fresh start.
They are seeking the change the traditional local pub feel into a “boutique” hotel with wellness centre, lounge and conference venue.
The new owners intend to shake off the hotel’s old pub roots, starting with transforming the adjacent ex-manager’s house into a wellbeing and wellness centre.
The wellness centre will open four treatment rooms of various sizes to members of the public and hotel residents.
A consulting space and a drug store will also open up with the space, which could mean a variety of health and wellbeing treatments may be on offer in the future.
The old lounge bar will become a conference venue, and the restaurant will relax into a lounge dining experience.
The “bulky” toilet block extension is set to go, replaced with a “sleek” dark grey aluminium conservatory.
Objections and letters of support even on city sauna application
The possibility of a community sauna in Inverness continues to divide people in the city.
As the Press and Journal has reported, a company called Community Sauna Highland has submitted proposals to Highland Council.
The sauna would be based in the city’s Bellfield Park.
Plans show the sauna could fit up to 26 people inside for people seeking “relaxation and rejuvenation”.
The sauna would be heated by an electric sauna stove, with an option for ladling water to create the signature steamy experience.
There have been now been 10 objections made against the project and 10 letters of support.
Bellfield Park resident Richard Newmark said: “A community sauna is not a suitable business to operate in a quiet established peaceful residential area for the same reasons that any business likely to cause disturbance (commercial, retail, entertainment etc) would be unacceptable.
“There are many possible alternative sites for a community sauna that are not close to residential properties, and all would satisfy the principal objection of avoiding disturbance to residents.”
Community Sauna Highland’s Pippa Hembry said sauna bathing has been a “game changer” for her health and wants other in Inverness to experience it.
In response to the objections, a statement from Ms Hembry and Fergus Weir outlined why they had picked the location they had.
They added: “Our aim is to make sauna possible for Inverness, close to where they live, so that they might incorporate this into their week the same way you might a fitness class or a social club.
“Therefore we have looked for a central location in Inverness.”
400 new houses on the edge of Inverness
A long-running housing project for 400 homes at Milton of Culloden has been approved by Highland councillors.
Springfield Properties has been granted permission, in principle, to begin developing plans for the site.
The plans have been in the pipeline for a number of years and were hit by a number of local objections.
Aird and Loch Ness councillor Chris Ballance questioned the lack of infrastructure included with the development, which is purely housing and will be reliant on nearby services in Culloden.
Culloden Community Council also raised concerns over the strain extra housing would put on struggling local services.
The local group was one of nine objections to the plans.
A report from planning officer Christine Macleod had recommended that members of the council’s south planning applications committee grant planning permission in principle – and the committee followed suit.
Spotted any plans you think we should know about? Get in touch at north@ajl.co.uk
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