A bitter disagreement has broken out among residents of an Angus village over plans for a 200-year-old heritage spot.
The Plashmill in Letham, built in 1805, has been disused for the best part of a decade and plans are under way to transform the area.
However, residents have claimed the elected group set up to oversee community assets did not consult them over plans to renovate the former mill for business use.
The mill was leased as a working garage and store from the early 1960s until around 2006, at which time the low rent made upkeep impossible.
The scheme Plashmill Renewed began in order to bring the building back into use with proposals for a heritage attraction and green energy showcase, which was never realised.
Thriving business Central Motors of Letham has now offered to re-roof the mill so businesses can move back in.
Since there is no change of use there is no planning permission required, and the business intends to divide the mill into three units.
But in a letter to Colin Ainsworth, chairman of the Feuars Committee, objectors claimed it has “failed miserably” in their responsibilities to Letham.
Plashmill neighbour and spokesman for the objectors John Snelling said: “There has been no formal notification or consultation with any of us regarding what we understand to be the rental of the site, and development of same, as a garage workshop for Central Motors in the village.
“Locating such a business in this mainly residential area will, we fear, have a significant impact on our lives and the potential for disruption to the general public in numerous ways.
“In addition, we have serious concerns for the potential pollution heavy oils and so on could have on the burn and the indigenous flora and fauna this area sustains.”
Feuars Committee secretary Isobel Sword told The Courier that much discussion had in fact taken place over what is a “very positive thing for the village” and the process had always been open.
“In that time, we’ve been thrashing out details like the rent levels, terms of the lease and things like that, so it would all be to the advantage of Letham,” she said.
“The Feuars Committee has sole direction in the letting of the mill. We decided this was good for the community.
“As far as parking on the street being an issue, there is plenty space around the back which has been cleared, and there should be no effect on the road.”
The mill was given to the people by landlord and village founding father George Dempster in 1805, at which time the committee was founded to manage the mill and the adjoining school “for such period as a majority of them shall think proper”.
Any income from the mill was to be used towards the common good. Plashmill was a place where raw flax was received and threads were made and passed out to cottages in the village.
The terms unanimously agreed by the Feuars Committee are that Central Motors foots the bill for repairs in exchange for the lease “set at a minimal rate,” for which it is expected the community would benefit from a financial return.
Andy Henderson of Central Motors said he had spoken to Angus Council planners and, as the building had been used as a garage since the 1960s, no planning permission is needed to begin the renovation.