A new budget hotel and student accommodation in St Andrews may still be built despite opposition.
Developer Robertson Property has appealed to the Scottish Government for permission to build the 90-bed hotel and homes for 100 students at Abbey Park.
The Abbey Park Residents’ Action Group demonstrated against the bid, claiming quality of life in the surrounding estate, mainly occupied by retired people and those with special needs, would be ruined.
Development of the site of Abbey Park House, demolished on safety grounds in 2013, would be the final part of a 15-year transformation of Abbey Park, where there are now almost 250 residential properties.
Fife Council’s north east planning committee rejected the planning application in May, on grounds including that student accommodation was not a use set out for the land in the council’s local development plan.
However, in its appeal to the Directorate for Planning and Environmental Appeals, Robertson Property claimed creation of student accommodation would help ease demand for controversial houses in multiple occupation (HMOs).
Its agent Barton Willmore said there was a strong need for both hotel and student accommodation in St Andrews, with the hotel of the style and scale sought by the council to address market imbalance and encourage more day trippers to stay overnight.
It said: “The new student accommodation will provide a use that is complementary to both the hotel and the surrounding residential properties, which will help to provide accommodation for some of the 3,946 students that currently do not have access to purpose-built student accommodation and who rely on securing accommodation through the local housing market.
“This will reduce the pressure on the local housing market, freeing up more availability for the resident population, while also housing students in a managed residential environment with support staff on hand.”
The upmarket estate at Abbey Park has been in development since 2009 on the former St Leonards field.
Resident group spokeswoman Dr Sandra Stewart hailed the council’s rejection as a victory for local democracy.
At the time, she said: “For all of us who have moved in there, and paid significant amounts of money for our properties, our lives would have been destroyed.”
The council has been asked to respond to the appeal by the DPEA.
A reporter appointed by the government will visit the site and is expected to issue a decision by December 6.
