Statement on development proposals for West Riverside, Balloch

A spokesperson for Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park Authority said:  “The prospective applicants for the site at West Riverside, Balloch, have requested an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) ‘Screening and Scoping Opinion’.

“This is a preliminary step in preparation for a potential future planning application for this site and is typically a requirement for proposals relating to major developments. While this is not a planning application at this stage, we appreciate that there will be there will be a lot of interest in this proposal. We would urge people with questions or comments about the proposals at this stage to direct these to the applicants.

“We would expect the next step to be them undertaking the required “Pre-Application Consultation” for major applications which gives people an opportunity to share their views with the prospective applicants before a formal planning application is submitted.

“This initial consultation is led by the applicant, not by the National Park Authority so we would encourage anyone with an interest in this proposed development to take part in the consultation by providing feedback directly to them.

“As the planning authority we will follow the normal statutory process for considering any major planning application that is eventually submitted. A decision can only be taken on these development proposals once a formal planning application is submitted and a detailed planning assessment is carried out following consultations.  We cannot comment on the merits of any proposals until the forthcoming planning process is completed.”

More information is available on our West Riverside webpage.

The planning process for handling major development proposals is set out in detail in our Major Planning Applications Explained blog.