Councillors faced with decision on future of Hoofields

Councillors will this week decide whether to give the green light to the major redevelopment of Hoofields in Lerwick.

Thirty-two of the existing chalets could be demolished and replaced by 76 new houses, should the application from the SIC’s housing service be granted.

The new units will comprise a mix of 28 one bedroom flats, 16 one bedroom houses, 22 two bedroom houses, eight houses with three bedrooms and two with four.

The move is being seen as a way of breathing new life into the arguably run-down area, and providing a way of reducing Shetland’s problematic housing list.

However not everyone is totally happy about the planning application as it stands.

Up to 32 of the new homes are planned for the existing chalet site, however the remaining 44 are scheduled to be built in what the council terms as a “zone four” area, described as “sparsely populated or generally uninhabited areas”. The policy aims to avoid sporadic development on those sites.

Members of the North Staney Hill Community Association have also raised questions surrounding the composition of the housing stock in the area.

They say the area already has a disproportionately high number of one bedroom units, which has led to an imbalance in the community mix.

Meanwhile the nearby Shetland Livestock Marketing Group has sought assurances the new houses will not result in restrictions on the mart or the forthcoming abattoir, which is currently under construction.

A planned boundary fence will be made higher, and extra tree-planting could be carried out to create a natural barrier and resolve any possible issues.

The application will come under scrutiny during a hearing at Wednesday’s SIC planning committee meeting in the Town Hall.