Whitesands project - latest position

Following the Scottish Ministers' decision to confirm the Scheme without modification and to grant deemed planning scheme in March 2020, the statutory period for potential legal challenge took place. This was delayed due to the covid pandemic but ended with no valid appeals lodged.

The scheme confirmation from Scottish government ministers is not time-limited. However, Deemed Planning Permission expires in March 2023. The current conditions attached to this prevent early completion of elements such as alternative parking provision, so to progress the scheme and to maintain planning permission, it was decided a planning application would be submitted to vary the conditions before the current scheme consent expires.

In early February 2023, an application was submitted to the planning authority by Dumfries and Galloway Council under Section 42 of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 for the Scheme. On 27 February, the application was validated by the planning authority, which will make a decision on the application in due course.

What happens next

Following this, the next phase would be the appointment of scheme designers to complete all detailed designs, prepare contract documentation and prepare for construction.

Further information

We've published background information so that you can find out more about the Whitesands Project . You can also view a 3D computer generated model of the scheme .

Contact us if you have any questions about this process or the project in general:

Page last updated: 03/03/2023
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