Residents in one of Scotland’s biggest villages will go to the polls again soon to gauge support for a controversial new housing plan.
Questionnaires will be delivered to nearly 3,000 households across Scone to gather views on a massive residential development.
Construction firm A&J Stephen is poised to lodge a planning application for 700 houses across acres of farmland to the north of the village, between Spoutswell Drive and Angus Road.
If approved, the scheme could see the population soar by almost half. Opponents claim the development will lead to a huge increase in traffic and could cause major pollution problems.
The poll comes amid fresh concern about whether the housing expansion can go ahead before the long-awaited Cross Tay Link Road – which will link the village with the A9 near Luncarty – is completed.
Originally, it was ruled that the majority of the plan could not go ahead until the bridge is built. However, the link road became an officially “committee project” at Wednesday’s capital budget talks.
Despite assurances from officers that this would not automatically open the floodgates to the full project, local councillor Lewis Simpson asked for his disdain to be registered. He said he wasn’t convinced this change would not affect the proposal.
The questionnaire is being carried out by the Scone study group which was set up by Scone Community Council to investigate Stephen’s proposals and other planning issues.
The group had initially approached Perth and Kinross Council to carry out the study, but was told it was “not appropriate at this time”. A statutory consultation will be carried out once the planning application has been lodged.
The study group raised more than £300 through a coffee morning to pay for printing costs.
A spokesman said that a similar poll was carried out by Perth and Kinross Council when the housing plan was first raised in 2007.
“This was carried out long before any detailed planning from the developer was submitted,” he said. “The housing proposal was rejected by 80% after a large return.
“As this proposal would increase the size of Scone by one third and has changed its original format from ‘after the bridge is built’ to ‘when the bridge is a committed project’, Scone and District Community Council and their study group would be keen to have the opinion of residents.”
The questionnaires will be hand delivered over the next two weeks and they can be returned to boxes at the village post office, Spar, Co-op and library by Monday, August 1.
