Bridge of Earn set for dozens of new homes in latest phase of Oudenarde saga

Councillors will be asked to approve the next phase in a major expansion of Bridge of Earn next week.

The works are part of GS Brown’s long-running Oudenarde project.

The family run construction company is led by former St Johnstone chairmen Geoff and Steve Brown.

It is seeking permission for another 66 houses on the site of the former Bridge of Earn hospital, south of Perth.

The homes are proposed for three plots of land close to the M90 Perth to Kinross motorway.

Perth and Kinross Council approved the works last year.

But the firm has submitted fresh applications after making a number of changes to its designs.

Officials are recommending them for approval again when the planning and placemaking committee meets next week.

A report to councillors says:  “The number of properties has not increased, the position in general terms of housing plots has not been revised, however there have been changes to house types, finishing materials, finished floor levels, boundary treatments, garage positions and road layout.”

The proposals also include a “landscape buffer” along the southern edge of the site and the western boundary with the M90 southbound slip road.

These will include cycling and walking routes, connecting with the wider Oudenarde site and beyond, including Bridge of Earn.

Oudenarde project hit by delays

The Oudenarde development was first mooted more than 20 years ago.

Named after a nearby farm, it could eventually stretch to 1,600 houses, some of which are already built.

Shops, a primary school and a park and ride facility are also proposed.

Planning permission in principle was granted in September 2016.

Permission for the latest phase was approved in October 2020, but only after the project had been called in by Scottish Ministers.

Councillors had been due to approve another 159 homes at a meeting in January 2018.

But that application was pulled after a last-minute intervention by Scottish ministers.

Transport Scotland claimed GS Brown had not demonstrated how the development would link safely to the M90.

It took two years for an agreement to be reached.

Earn Community Council was among the bodies consulted on the latest phase. It raised concerns about the likely impact on primary education and health care.

Perth and Kinross Heritage Trust has said the site may have some archaeological potential and the development will require monitoring.