New planning documents will 'shape future of area'
The Highland Council is preparing a new and important planning document that will shape the future of the process for years to come.
The Highland Local Development Plan will be used to determine planning applications and steer future development and investment in the area.
Three documents have just been published, the first of which invites new development site suggestions to be considered for inclusion in the new plan.
Chair of the council’s Economy and Infrastructure Committee, Councillor Ken Gowans, explained: “This is an important part of the evidence consultation and feedback is particularly encouraged from landowners, developers and communities that have land or building opportunities that they wish to promote for housing, industry or mixed-use development.”
Nominated sites will need to be accompanied by sufficient supporting evidence in order to be fairly assessed.
Scotland’s revised planning system now requires each council to prove the sufficiency and assess the implications of its evidence before preparing a plan for its area.
A council spokesperson added: "We are asking if we’ve missed anything relevant and for views on the implications of that evidence - and we want to the public to tell us.
"Finally, we have published our 2025 Development Plans Newsletter which provides more detail on how and when we will consult. This can be viewed at www.highland.gov.uk/devplansnewsletter."
Councillor Gowans added: “The approach we are taking in preparing a new single LDP for Highland is very much a collaborative one.
"We are encouraging the public, stakeholders and organisations to provide us with their input and have a say on what evidence they think we should use before we get in to drafting the plan itself.
“We want to engage people on the issues facing Highland communities right now so we can create a single strong, place based, people-focused and deliverable Local Development Plan that captures the distinct issues and priorities across our communities. I hope as many people as possible take up this invitation to get involved and help to shape the new Highland Local Development Plan.”
Feedback from the consultation will help the council prepare an ‘evidence report’, which will be submitted for independent review later in 2025, before a draft plan is prepared.
Take part by visiting www.highland.gov.uk/hldp
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