RESIDENTS in a tiny hamlet near Luss have accused the area’s major landowner of “treating them with contempt”, in an ongoing dispute over plans to build new homes.

Luss Estates have come under attack from unhappy homeowners who are objecting to proposals for seven new houses to be developed on greenfield sites in and around Muirlands.

The original planning applications were submitted in January 2017 and included blueprints for 30 new homes across eight separate sites in Luss and the surrounding area – ten of them in Muirlands.

And despite the reduction in the number of homes proposed for sites in Muirlands, residents remain unhappy at the plans to build near their properties.

The Muirlands community feel strongly about the potential negative impact on their own properties and the environment, with many growing frustrated at the long, drawn-out process.

Luss and Arden community councillor John Kelly, who lives in Muirlands, said: “It’s not really any further forward. There’s been a slight reduction in the number of houses, but the impact is just the same, if not worse.

“Muirlands is a wee settlement, and what they’re proposing to do is enclose it, left, right and centre with new houses and planning elements hemming in what’s there already.

“Even those of us who live there, pulling onto the main road [B832], have got to be careful.

“It’s a well-known accident black-spot and there will be five new entrances on to the road, which are just going to exacerbate these issues.

“The rural development plan says that in any application for housing, ideally 100 per cent should be affordable houses, and at the very least 50 per cent should be affordable.

“In this application, only one out of the seven houses is affordable.”

Mr Kelly said these points had been put to Luss Estates, but they were met with no response.

He added: “If they had engaged with the community, we could have given alternative suggestions which would have made this more acceptable.

“But the company, over the past year and a half, have not communicated at all with the local community.

“In fact, they have treated us with contempt.

“Had they engaged with us, we may have arrived at a satisfactory solution.”

Luss Estates disputed Mr Kelly’s claims and said they pride themselves in being “good neighbours”.

The company’s chief executive Simon Miller said: “Developments such as the one proposed at Muirlands are incredibly important for the future of small communities and ensuring that the next generation has places to live.

“We worked very closely with the Luss and Arden community to draw up a strategic development framework in 2013 which set out an agreement on how best to develop the area with the aim of building the local economy and growing the local population, so as to make local communities more sustainable in the future.

“Much of this has been adopted by the National Park in their planning document for the area, and the initiative has already delivered new businesses and homes.

“More homes are in planning – and the Muirlands proposals form part of that.

“We appreciate that there will always be some who oppose any development, but we disagree with Mr Kelly’s view.”