A bus firm has been given the go ahead to replace part of its Forfar depot destroyed by fire in January.
JP Coaches suffered £500,000 worth of damage when the blaze took hold on a Sunday night.
Four buses and a mechanic’s van were burnt out at the Orchardbank Industrial Estate depot.
The fire also caused serious damage to a large shed, resulting in the roof caving in.
Firefighters spent almost three hours tackling the incident.
A subsequent police and fire investigation revealed the blaze was not suspicious.
JP Coaches has a fleet of more than 30 vehicles.
It now has a new base at Logie business park at Kirriemuir.
As well as private hire and service contracts, it is of one of the main providers of transport for Angus schools.
Council green light
Angus planners have now given the company permission for a replacement unit at the site.
It will be used for vehicle storage and have a total area of 345 sq. m.
The three-bay building will be built on the footprint of the fire-ravaged shed.
“The design is relatively utilitarian in appearance but would be consistent with the design of the building to be replaced and others neighbouring the application site,” planners said.
“In terms of impacts on amenity, the site is completely surrounded by business, industrial and storage land uses.
“There are no sensitive land uses in the immediate vicinity whose amenity would be significantly adversely affected by the proposed development.”
