16 February 2010

Chief Planner, Fife Council Planning Department, County Buildings, St Catherine Street, Cupar KY15 9TY

Dear Sir/Madam,

PLANNING APPLICATION 09/03053/FULL 3 BARNSLAW COTTAGES, ST ANDREWS

At a Special Meeting of Kingsbarns Community Council, held today, a decision was taken to raise two objections with Fife Council, with regard to the handling of planning application 09/03053/FULL and the application proposals:

1 MALADMINISTRATION

Kingsbarns Community Council could not identify that this application was within their administrative area, due to the address being logged as 3 Barnslaw Cottages, St Andrews. It could, therefore, not exercise its function as a statutory consultee. The Public Notice Neighbour Notification had this misleading address, while on the same list was included application 09/02932/FULL, 8 Lady Wynd, Kingsbarns, St Andrews (the inclusion of St Andrews in any Kingsbarns address is also potentially misleading, as we are 6 miles from St Andrews, for clarity on Planning Lists). It is also noted that an objection lodged by a Kingsbarns resident was not logged on the website Application Details. This objector was told that a decision on the application would not be taken until Thursday 18 February 2010, yet the Application Details record a Decision Issued Date of 15 February 2010. Why was an environmental assessment not requested?

2 ERECTION OF A DWELLINGHOUSE, GRANNY FLAT AND DOUBLE GARAGE.

The Community Council agrees with the objection submitted by The Architectural Heritage Society of Scotland, that this proposal is seriously inappropriate and would set an unacceptable precedent for the development of the other two plots. The Community Council considers that the layout pattern and scale of the proposed development is totally wrong for this isolated rural site, is urban in character and is an intrusion into the surrounding countryside.

Yours faithfully, Secretary

Copy to: Cllr MacGregor, Cllr Riches, Cllr Scott-Hayward, Alison Waite, Case Officer, Glen L Pride, The Architectural Society of Scotland, Sir Menzies Campbell MP, Iain Gray MSP, David M Middleton, St Andrews Preservation Trust

Note: The official delegated report was "prepared" on 10 February 2010 and signed off by planners on 12 February 2010. The official consultation on the proposal was still ongoing at that time.

See also: Complaint to council on lack of paper plans - for related concerns from St Andrews Community Council.