Council / Planning service still waiting for update on Viking compound car park
THE LOCAL planning service is requesting an update from SSE on its proposed public car park south of Voe after waiting for months for further information on drainage.
A representative of SSE said in July that it should take a “few weeks” to work on the required SuDS (sustainable drainage systems) documentation, with the application on hold in the meantime.
However the planning service has had to write to SSE requesting an update as it remains in the dark.
Shetland News, meanwhile, first asked SSE Renewables for an update on the car park plans on 5 November but despite reminders, no information has yet been provided.
The application is for turning the ‘north’ Viking wind farm construction compound into a public car park, which would also include a picnic area and a storage container for all-terrain wheelchair.
The aim of the car park is to allow people to leave their vehicles and walk on the Viking wind farm tracks.
However, despite the controversial wind farm now being operational for several months the tracks are not yet open to the public.
The car park proposal received a number of objections, including from Delting Community Council, which wanted to see the access point moved.
If this particular objection is unresolved, the case would be decided by councillors on the SIC’s planning committee.
However, the lack of updates from SSE has meant the SIC has been unable to fix the application to a committee meeting.
The planning service had also suggested some form of supporting statement would be useful to “go towards answering questions that are likely to be asked by the planning committee”.
Development manager team leader John Holden wrote to SSE that it had hoped the documentation would have been submitted in time to allow the application to be heard at a planning committee meeting yesterday (4 December). However, this was not possible, and no meeting took place.
Holden advised that the next planning committee meeting is scheduled for 13 February.
He also expressed concern that the public may think the hold-up with the application is the planning authority’s fault.
Holden said previous Viking wind farm planning monitoring officer audit reports have “included observations that the application is awaiting approval”.
“This might suggest to readers that action on the part of the planning authority is being waited on, however this is not you will appreciate the case,” he wrote.
In a letter written on 19 November, Holden asked SSE to advise when the planning service can expect documents on drainage and the supporting statement.
However, at the time of writing no response from SSE has been uploaded to the planning portal.
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