Issue - meetings

Report by Head of Development and Economic Growth

The Area Team Leader for Mid Argyll, Kintyre and the Islands spoke to the terms of the report.  This Proposal of Application Notice (PAN) is for a proposed distillery, related purposes and a visitor centre.  Associated and ancillary development is to include warehouse buildings, services and hardstanding areas, parking, access roads and footpaths.  Associated plant and infrastructure is to include renewable energy infrastructure, drainage arrangements, electrical sub-station and hard and soft landscaping.  Two buildings are envisaged: a distillery, café, shop and tour building north of the Port Charlotte to Kilchiaran road towards Loch Gearach; and south of the road, a building to replace an existing cattle shed for grain storage, distilling by-product management and barrel warehousing.  The application site lies within the countryside west of Port Charlotte, Islay and is identified in the Local Development Plan (LDP) Spatial Strategy as ‘Tourism Development Area’.  A number of nature designations are also identified in the spatial strategy, and the entire island is designated a ‘Water Conservation Area’.  The majority of the site is located within the countryside zone and the scale of the intended development is ‘large’ in terms of the typologies established by the LDP (site in excess of 2 hectares).  The report sets out the information submitted to date as part of the PAN and summarises the policy considerations, against which any future planning application will be considered as well as any material considerations.

It is recommended that Members have regard to the content of the report and submissions and provide such feedback as they consider appropriate in respect of the PAN to allow any matters to be considered by the Applicant in finalising any future planning application submissions.

Decision

The Committee noted the content of the report and submissions and agreed that the Applicant should take into consideration the following when finalising any future planning application submissions:

·         Impact on Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), Sites of Archaeological Importance (SACs), Special Protection Areas (SPAs) and the Ramsar Site

(Reference: Report by Head of Development and Economic Growth dated 3 September 2021, submitted)