A9 North Kessock EV and retail hub plan revised by West Coast Estates after push back from Black Isle community
Plans for a controversial drive-through at a proposed development next to the A9 on the Black Isle have been dropped after push back from the community.
But a sit-down café is still on the cards as part of West Coast Estates’ plans to build an EV charging hub, shop and eatery on land on the outskirts of North Kessock.
Concerned residents have objected to the proposal, which would be located on open land next to the roundabout that motorists encounter after exiting the northbound A9 carriageway. They have cited a loss of green space, competition with shops in the heart of the village, increased volumes of traffic, and litter from the drive-through - among others.
Politicians such as Highland Green MSP Ariane Burgess have also previously spoken out on the plans, with Ms Burgess saying the land had originally been zoned for a park-and-ride rather than retail space.
Following the push back, WCE - which claims the proposals will create up to 100 jobs - has brought back revised plans for the café element, and confirmed it had dropped the drive-through in response to public feedback.
"Previously, this was proposed to be a drive-through, with lane wrapped around the east and south sides of the building. The drive-through lane has been removed from the proposal in response to comments from both the Planning Policy Team and Transport Planning Team at the Highland Council, advising that a proposed drive-through would not be supported.
"Accordingly, the revised proposal is for a regular café/restaurant to be provided on Plot 2."
The proposed location of the shop and car parking on the site have also been revised, effectively swapping positions with each other in order to move that building further from a major high-pressure gas pipeline.
Scottish Gas Networks (SGN) had previously objected to the proposals, saying the development fell too close to the underground pipeline, which passes through the north-west corner of the land.
It is not known if it will drop its objection now the shop has been moved further away from the gas line, but in a supporting statement, WCE's agent claimed that the Health & Safety Executive had dropped its own objection following the redesign.
The statement said: "A high pressure gas pipeline passes below the northwest corner of the site. This has been the subject of extensive discussions between: WCE; their appointed design team; Scottish Gas Networks [SGN], who are the pipeline operator; and the Health and Safety Executive [HSE], who are responsible for assessing and regulating risks associated with high pressure pipelines and other hazards to safeguard the public."
They continued: "The main difference between the original proposal and current proposal is a reorientation of the layout of Plot 1 [the shop], in which the position of car parking and the retail unit have effectively been reversed.
"This change has been made in response to comments from SGN and HSE, made both to the councils through consultation on the application and in subsequent direct discussions with WCE and their appointed design team. Accordingly, the current proposal respects a 6m radius “no development zone” around the gas pipeline that SGN requires and HSE has also confirmed in that positioning the EV charging station, car parking and internal roads/paths within their designated inner pipeline hazard zone is acceptable - whereas a building in that location would not be acceptable."
Describing other changes to what was originally proposed, the statement added: “In addition to the reorientation of Plot 1 and removal of the drive-through lane from Plot 2, other key changes between the original and current proposals include: the provision of eight Sheffield bicycle racks within the site (four beside each building); the proposal of a signalised crossing beyond the south boundary to provide a link across the A9 southbound feeder road to the rest of the village; and a path connection to the National Cycle Network (NCN) Route 1 through the northeast corner of the site.”
The redesign also appears to have reduced the number of parking bays. The originally designed layout had space for more than 60 car parking bays, and an additional 10 bays on top for EV charging.
But the revision takes the number of general parking bays down to 44, with six of those for disabled motorists, while the number of EV charging bays would increase to 15, one of which would be for disabled drivers.
A mix of eight new trees - beech, copper beech, snowy mespillis and Norway maple - would also be planted in a row near the southern and western flanks of the shop. A further two would be planted in the parking area. Some space would also be allotted to wildflowers, as well as a small hedge near some trees at the entrance to the site. Only one existing tree, located on the south side of the foot/cycle path that borders the site, would be felled.