A housebuilder has failed in their appeal against an Angus Council refusal for more than 80 homes on the edge of Forfar.
The development would have been built on either site of the historic Rosie Road path leading off Arbroath Road.
But last April councillors rejected the 81-house bid by Stirling-based Ogilvie Homes.
The company was criticised for trying to cram too many houses into the undulating site.
At one time, there were plans to build 100 houses there.
And permission was granted for around 60 homes on the six-hectare site in 2014.
But that scheme never went ahead.
Reporter’s decision
Ogilvie Homes took the matter to appeal.
But a Scottish Ministers reporter has now backed the council’s refusal decision.
The company said houses there with septic tanks could link in to a new drainage system.
But there were more than 20 letters of objection, mainly around the scale of the planned development.
The appeal reporter said that although the site is allocated for housing, the planned layout was not acceptable.
Core path
And they highlighted the Rosie Road’s importance.
The path runs through the heart of the site, which is close to Forfar Golf Club.
“Rosie Road is a well-used but unsurfaced pedestrian footpath passing along a fenced corridor of between five and ten metres in width,” the appeal reporter added.
“The representations indicate its value to the local community and this is reflected in its designation as a core path.
“Because it cannot be altered, it places a constraint on the layout of development.”
And they said that even planned changes by the developer for rear gardens of houses facing the Rosie Road would not stop the beauty of the path being undermined.
“I do not doubt that this is the right place for development but I am not convinced that the proposals constitute the ‘right development’,” the reporter said.
One local dog walker said: “I think the council got it right and now the reporter has got it right.
“This is a really popular path and has been for years.
“It would have completely changed it by having so many houses on each side of it.”
Ogilvie Homes’ developments include The Heathers and Newtyle and Drover’s Gate in Crieff.
