After more than a decade in the planning, developers are poised to begin work on a £60 million five-star hotel and conference complex near Perth.
Construction will begin on the 21-acre riverside site at Kinfauns early next year, with the 300-bedroom hotel open for business by mid-2017.
Project leader, Perthshire-based property developer Joseph Khazaka, said he was “excited” to have reached this stage but admitted it had been a long journey.
“It is obviously a big thing but if I had thought it would take 11 years of my life I wouldn’t have entertained it,” said Mr Khazaka.
During that period he saw theeconomic downturn hit the project with a possible operator going out of business during the recession.
Now he believes that the timing is right with the global economy picking up and the £1 billion waterfrontdevelopment in Dundee under way.
“The V&A is a new phenomenon, it wasn’t planned when we started out,” he said.
His daughter, Lita Khazaka, is the lead architect on the project and he is proud of her vision which he believes has created a building which is sympathetic to the environment.
A relatively low-rise structure which mimics the contours of the hills, it has a grassed roof which will be sustainable and ensure that as far as possible it will blend in with the countryside.
The project, which has the backing of local councillors and the ScottishGovernment, has been unusual in that it has attracted very little opposition.
Mr Khazaka believes that this is down to recognition of the significanteconomic impact it will bring to the area, creating more than 300 permanent jobs plus a further 185 indirect posts.