Forfar caravan park is set for a major upgrade in a bid to lure more tourists to the town.
Angus planners have given the Caravan and Motorhome Club the go ahead to improve more than 25 pitches at the Lochside site.
It will see half a dozen converted to all-weather, and 20 current all-weather pitches become serviced slots.
The services pitches will be able to take grey water and include shared illuminated electrical hook-up bollards and drinking water.
Site chiefs say they hope the improvement will make the award-winning park more accessible to visitors.
“All-weather caravan pitches are especially popular with the elderly, who make up a large proportion of our membership, as they offer a more uniformed pitching surface than grass,” they said.
“We have found through extensive testing and evaluation that the design of the all-weather pitch offers the best access to those with mobility issues and their installation will offer a high level of usability.”
The Caravan and Motorhome Club has not been able to give an indication of the amount of money it is spending on the upgrade.
The park was run by Angus Council until 2010 when the then Caravan Club took it over.
The site has around 75 pitches in total.
It has since undergone a range of improvements to pitches and the main reception building.
The site is open for a few more weeks before its winter shutdown until early March.
Leisure centre demolition
It will mean visitors are not affected by the demolition of the former Lochside leisure centre next door.
Fencing has been put around the centre and adjacent playpark in preparation for the knocking down of the building, which has lain empty for five years.
But the cost of razing it has jumped £150,000 to £650,000.
Falkirk-based Central Demolition have been on site for the past week.
The demolition was delayed until after the Angus schools’ autumn holiday and is expected to take five months.
The site will be returned to parkland following a landmark Court of Session case fought by two local businessmen in an attempt to find a new use for the centre.
‘Honking’ sewer pipe repair
Meanwhile, Scottish Water have embarked on a project to repair a broken pipe which leaked raw sewage into the country park.
In 2021 the problem led to the pitch and putt course being sealed off and complaints about the “honking” smell in the area.
The repair is scheduled to take three months.
