Stonehaven Golf Club members back

council's plans for new clubhouse

and revamped course

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY STONEHAVEN GOLF CLUB
Stonehaven Golf Club is pushing ahead with its plans for a multi-million pound redevelopment.
The 120-year-old club, which has more than 500 members, plans to sell about 20 acres of its land to a house builder and use the proceeds to revamp the course on the Braes of Cowie.
Part of the development of the course would include a new clubhouse on the field immediately to the south of the current clubhouse, which is an old wooden building no longer fit for purpose. The new clubhouse would be on a site within easy walking distance of Stonehaven town centre.
A special general meeting of members last week voted overwhelmingly to give the club’s elected council the authority to progress matters with the developer.
Should the planning process be successful, the club intends to make its new clubhouse available to a wide range of local organisations for meetings and functions.
Club captain Harry Roulston, pictured above, said: “Traditionally, golf clubs have tended to be used only by golfers and that is perhaps one reason why so many clubs, including our own, are experiencing such tough times financially.
“If our plans proceed as we hope, we will consult widely with other local organisations in Stonehaven before we finalise the design of the new clubhouse.
“We want it to become a real community asset, accessible to local people who may not want to play golf but who might find it useful to affiliate with the golf club and use its facilities for activities, meetings or social events.
“We plan to provide a first-class building with excellent modern facilities, which can be flexible to cope with activities for large and small groups.”
The club believes there is a need for such a building in Stonehaven following the closure of five hotels in the town over the past ten years.
The club has been working directly with the Stewart Milne Group (SMG) for more than a year to promote land belonging to the club on the west side of the Aberdeen-Dundee railway line for residential development.
Earlier this year, with the consent of the club, SMG submitted proposals to build houses on this 20-acre piece of land to Aberdeenshire Council as part of the council’s Local Development Plan process. This land currently contains four golf holes.
The new clubhouse and replacement holes would be located nearer the town to the south of the current clubhouse.
Golf course designer Graeme Webster has produced plans for the new holes and also for a revamp of the existing Stonehaven course.
Mr Roulston said: “We have been most impressed by Mr Webster’s design plans. His artist’s impressions of what the new field would look like are quite stunning and the changes he has recommended for the existing course, lying to the east of the railway line, would improve it greatly and would make our course much more attractive to play for members and visitors alike.”
The whole project, however, depends on Aberdeenshire Council allowing a residential housing development on the golf club’s land, Mr Roulston said.
Aberdeenshire Council’s Local Plan, which is being compiled at present, will allow for new housing development in Stonehaven. One of the sites under consideration is at Mains of Cowie and SMG’s masterplan for development at Mains of Cowie includes part of the golf course.
At present, council planning officials have suggested the golf course land may be unsuitable for houses, citing landscaping reasons, but SMG has lodged an objection to this.
“Our club hopes that local councillors will see the benefits of the development for the town and for the people of Stonehaven and can be persuaded to allow the development to proceed,” said Mr Roulston.
“If the deal goes ahead, the benefits for the town will be enormous. The future of the golf club will be assured for the next generation, which has to be very important for the town, and the community will have access to a terrific new facility, all at no cost to the public purse.”
He added: “Normally, when a land-owner sells some land, he pockets the cash and departs. What makes our plan different is that every penny our club receives for our land will be ploughed back into improved facilities, which will benefit not only our members but our visitors and the whole community.”