The attraction of housebuilding in Angus is hampering the development of a major housebuilding project in Dundee, according to a rural property expert.
There have been plans to expand Dundee westwards on land between the Landmark Hotel and Liff for more than 10 years. But in the decade since the scheme was conceived, only 150 of the 750 planned homes have been built.
Last month Bett Homes pulled out of the project, creating a major financial headache for Dundee City Council, which has invested more than £3m in infrastructure for the development.
Instead of looking to build to the east of Dundee, a number of housing developers have been clamouring to build in western Angus, to the east of Dundee, contrary to what city planners want.
A meeting of Dundee City Council’s policy and resources committee tonight is due to consider the revised development plan for the city.
Gordon King, an estate agent who has represented landowners at the site for more than 10 years, said he still had high hopes for the Dundee Western Gateway villages despite the difficulties it has encountered.
“The plans incorporate the best of what is good about village living with lovely, quirky, interesting homes, open spaces and places to meet.”
Mr King accepted that the Western Gateway appeared to be in trouble after Betts backed out, but the decade of false dawns had not diminished his admiration for the scope and ambition of the project.
He concluded: “The Western villages have faced a stormy passage, but with the courage, determination and patience for which Dundee is justly known, I believe this project will eventually succeed and will provide a beacon for sustainable, interesting and desirable housing for many years into the future.”
Recent criticism of the Western Gateway is likely, he said, to have come from those with a vested interest in other competing development sites who would benefit from the failure of the Western expansion.