Plans to transform the former Kitty’s nightclub in Kirkcaldy into flats have been approved.
The once-popular venue closed in 2019 and has lain empty ever since.
Edinburgh-based developer Hunter Street Properties has now been granted permission to convert the B-listed town centre building into 19 flats.
The development will see the former night spot and hotel on the corner of Hunter Street turned into 10 apartments.
It includes a small, one-bedroom flat in the attic.
Meanwhile, Kandy’s Bar, previously known as Thunder Road and The Gallery, will be demolished and replaced with a further nine two-bedroom flats.
Objections to Kitty’s flats plan
However, the approval comes with a condition and hinges on the signing of a legal agreement.
It states the developer must pay the council £17,000 towards the provision of affordable homes elsewhere in Fife.
The application received 10 objections from neighbours with a number of concerns.
These included fears the flats would overlook their gardens and objections to the demolition of the old church behind Kandy’s.
The building, which hasn’t been used as a church since 1920, will be replaced by a new three-storey extension.
Planning officer Mary Stewart recommended approval, saying: “On balance, it’s considered better to secure the building as a whole by bringing it back into beneficial use.”
From top nightspot to controversy
Kitty’s was once one of Kirkcaldys busiest clubs.
It was built into the old post office in the late 1990s and housed The Auld Post Hotel, as well as Kitty’s and the pub now know as Kandy’s.
And in its heyday, queues stretched from the front door all the way up Wemyssfield.
It was originally owned by Remo Macocia and later Mario Caira, whose family was well-known in the Fife entertainment scene.
And numerous celebrities made personal appearances there over the years.
But the owners sparked controversy and protests by opening a strip club, Sin, on site in 2018.
However, a later petition launched in support of the club gained more signatures.
The building last used by Kandy’s, meanwhile, has been a telephone exchange, a sorting office, a suite for a hotel and a bar/diner.
