More than £4 million-worth of work to help bring new housing, tourism and jobs to the Mearns got the blessing of Aberdeenshire’s Provost on a special tour of the area.
Jill Webster toured project sites in the Mearns as part of a drive to promote industry.
Accompanied by the council’s area manager Willie Munro and councillors Carl Nelson and Peter Bellarby, the provost visited developments in Gourdon, Stonehaven and at Bervie Braes.
The day began with a visit to Newtonhill to view the site for Chapelton of Elsick a massive development from Angus-based Lord Southesk which will create more than 4,000 houses as well as schools, shops, offices, commercial units and park spaces.
The provost viewed the plans and chatted to the developer.
The party then met members of the Stonehaven Town Partnership (STP), Stonehaven Business Association, Stonehaven Tourism Group and staff from the Caravan Club of Great Britain at the Queen Elizabeth Caravan Park.
The council has leased the site to STP, which has in turn leased it to the Caravan Club of Great Britain. The caravan club has invested £1.8 million in a complete redevelopment of the site which has now been open for a week.
From there, the group travelled down the coast to Gourdon to meet volunteers from the Maggie Law Museum and pupils from Gourdon Primary School.
The provost’s final stop was the viewpoint at the top of the recently reopened Bervie Braes road, which was closed for several years after major landslides.
Following a £3 million programme of stabilisation works, the road has now been reopened during the summer months.
The provost said: “This has been a fantastic opportunity for me to meet the people behind some really important projects for Kincardine and Mearns.
“After the council’s recent Volunteer Awards, this visit has further highlighted how important volunteers are to the success of some of our best community facilities.
Mr Munro added: “A lot of good things are happening here.
“Without the hard work and dedication of the many community and volunteer groups across south Aberdeenshire it would not be possible to have so many great attractions.”