Highland Council receives planning application for four tourist chalet/glamping pods and a large manager’s house on land near Reelig Wood with views across the Beauly Firth
Glamping pods and a house could be built on hillside near Reelig Wood under plans lodged with Highland Council.
Applicants Mr and Mrs W Macdonald are seeking to erect four wooden chalet pods, a communal bike shed and store, and a large manager's house on land 115M north-east of Willowbank, Newtonhill, Lentran. The site is on open croft land to the east of Reelig Glen.
If approved the new manager's house would be one-and-a-half-storeys tall, feature five en-suite bedrooms, a formal dining room, family dining and kitchen room, lounge, office, and a workshop/garage which will be attached to the rest of the building via a roofed-over car port. The development would be accessed via a new road running from the existing public road access for Willowbank's driveway.
Each pod would include its own bathroom and kitchen facilities.
The applicant also plans to plant new hedging on the northern side of the wooden pods, access road, and manager's house to shield the development from the public road and other properties, although the pods would still enjoy views across to the Beauly Firth.
A supporting statement lodged with the application by agents Ness Planning said: "The proposal seeks to develop a quality tourist-based facility, offering short term let accommodation within a rural area but with easy access to the main tourist routes to the east and A862 in particular.
"The proposed house will provide the applicant with a base from which to manage the facility, welcome guests etc together with maintaining the site."
They continued: "The site comprises an area of open grazing land forming part of a small croft. The land is set above the level of the public road and increases in height southwards towards Reelig Wood. The position of the pods has been selected to take advantage of the undulating landform and to set the pods into the landscape.
"The proposed house will be located on land above the pods, close to the site of the original croft house, now ruinous. There are no houses associated with the croft, with only the ruin remaining to demonstrate that the croft once included a house."
They continued: "The proposed location of the house is set back from the pods providing privacy and security.
"It occupies the site of the original croft house and makes use of a naturally occurring level area of ground while providing direct access to the remainder of the croft and woodland to the south.
"Its position is historically appropriate in the context of the croft noting the siting of the original croft house and moreover is in line with the existing houses that extend east and west along the section of hillside at Newtonhill."
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