A roadside service station could be the site of a brand new 60-bed motel and garden centre.
The plans aim to construct a travel lodge or motel and garden centre at Stracathro Services on the A90.
A report prepared by chartered surveyors McCrae and McCrae Ltd says the plans aim to “improve the existing Transis Ltd roadside facilities”.
Previous outline planning permission was granted for the erection of a 60-bedroom Travelodge and a sewage treatment work on the site in 1998.
Permission for those plans has now expired but McCrae and McCrae said in their report that this new application draws loosely on that previous application.
“This (the hotel) would provide a great addition to what are already highly regarded tourist facilities,” they said.
“The motel development would be capable of meeting the high demand in the locale whilst also offering additional car/lorry parking and a picnic amenity area.
“The location of the site is ideal in that it provides an excellent resting point between Dundee and Aberdeen and visitors from further afield. There is very little competition, other than off-road sites at Forfar and Stonehaven.
“The annexed plans also detail a proposed garden centre. Mrs Pat Melville Evans intends to grow vegetables and flowers in the nearby listed walled garden.
“Proceeds from the garden centre will enable her to maintain the walls to a better standard.
“It is also suggested that ‘farmers’ market’ type produce be sold in the centre. There is demand from local farmers to have their produce sold here. The resurgence in interest in local quality produce would increase the amenity as well as tourism interest in the site and surrounding area.”
The report states: “The Stracathro service area is a preferred site for additional road side facilities on the A90 (Dundee to Aberdeen).
“The existing facilities and access from the grade separated junction allows the site to be fully and safely utilised by road users.
“The development of the area will improve the environmental character, promote tourism, bolster the local economy and the infrastructural management of the land.”
The report also provides further information on the proposed wind turbine which would be used to power the operation.
The turbine is expected to measure a total height of 148ft.
The report adds: “Current annual usage year to date is in excess of £100,000 and this will rise when the motel is developed.
“As the business expands alongside production over the next few years, this figure will rise, hence the requirement for a 100Kw turbine, which will be able to generate a good proportion of the daily electricity requirement, even when the wind speeds are lower.
“The turbine is a state-of-the-art machine, having had the gearbox engineered out, resulting in minimal noise and maximum efficiency.
“The amount of electricity generated has a clear relationship with the strength of the wind and given the fact that this turbine can work in wind conditions as low as three metres per second (6mph), this turbine has a clear advantage over other models that require higher wind speeds to operate.”