Chris Monk
Well-known member
Birds or birdies? The battle looms for £1bn Trumptown
FRANK URQUHART
(furquhart'at'scotsman.com)
Golf resort plans take the next step but opponents still have their objections Conservationists want proper protection for bird species in the area Business interests seem to want the course, but Trump says he will go elsewhere if things get difficult Key quote "Mr Trump is very interested in building something that is going to last way past our lifetimes. It is the biggest thing that has happened to this economy since oil. We understand there are going to be detractors and there are going to be a lot of challenges. If those challenges become insurmountable, then we are going to have to go to plan B." - Ashley Cooper, vice-president for golf developments in the Trump Organisation
Story in full THE stage has been set for a battle between billionaire Donald Trump and environmentalists after the unveiling of a £1 billion masterplan to build "the world's greatest golf resort" on a spectacular stretch of links land in the north-east of Scotland.
Hailed as the largest economic development in the area since the discovery of North Sea oil, Mr Trump's plan is to build two championship golf courses - one capable of hosting the Open Championship and the Ryder Cup - as a lasting legacy to the world of golf.
But although he has largely convinced the business community of the case for development, Mr Trump faces a bigger battle with the Royal Society for Protection of Birds (RSPB) and other conservation organisations determined to ensure proper protection on the environmentally sensitive links on the Menie Estate near Balmedie.
The area is host to hundreds of thousands of seabirds, ducks and divers - most notably guillemots, kittiwakes, common scoters and eiders, and nationally important numbers of red-throated divers.
On shore, the RSPB points out that the sand dunes that stretch in spectacular style from Aberdeen to Ythan are protected for the wide range of plants and invertebrates they hold, not to mention breeding birds including skylarks, lapwings and shelducks.
Concern for the environment increased yesterday after the Trump proposal - already massive - was formally submitted to Aberdeenshire Council.
The original plan talked of a £300 million scheme covering 800 acres. But the outline masterplan is for an extended 1,400-acre site costing more than three times the original development.
The blueprint still includes proposals for two championship courses and a five-star luxury hotel with 450 bedrooms - at the end of a road to be known as Trump Boulevard.
The application also includes plans for a holiday home development of almost 1,000 timeshare condominiums - already dubbed "Trumptown" - and two areas of land, totalling 300 acres, which have been controversially zoned for potential future residential developments for permanent luxury homes.
Mr Trump remained in the United States yesterday as details of his golfing dream were unveiled in a church hall, a few miles from the site of his proposed development.
Ashley Cooper, the vice-president for golf developments in the Trump Organisation, told a press conference the tycoon wanted to transform the stretch of linksland into a golfing Mecca.
But he warned that if planning obstacles proved insurmountable, Mr Trump would look elsewhere.
RSPB Scotland said earlier this year that the wildlife-rich coast of Aberdeenshire could be seriously damaged, and vital bird populations decimated by the development and a planned nearby offshore wind farm.
Ian Francis, RSPB Scotland's Grampian area manager, said: "From our point of view, little has changed today.
"We now need to look at the detail of the outline application, and, we'll submit a response in due course."
Friends of the Earth Scotland and the Green Party have also expressed reservations, although all three groups are keen to see an environmental impact assessment - due early next year - before making their objections formal.
For most, however, Mr Trump's ambitious plans are the best piece of news the area has received in the past decade.
Golfer Colin Montgomerie said: "I know Donald. His money coming to Scotland can only boost Scotland."
Open Championship winner Paul Lawrie said: "If Mr Trump is willing to put that kind of money forward and to build that sort of place, it's got to be good."
Mr Cooper continued: "Simply put, our goal is to build the greatest golf resort development in the world.
"Mr Trump is very interested in building something that is going to last way past our lifetimes. It is the biggest thing that has happened to this economy since oil. We understand there are going to be detractors and there are going to be a lot of challenges. If those challenges become insurmountable, then we are going to have to go to plan B.
"But our focus - and we will work for however long it takes - is to build the greatest mixed-use golf and residential development right here in north-east Scotland."
The outline application shows the detailed layout of the main championship course stretching out along the coast behind the spectacular dunes at the edge of the Menie Estate.
The luxury 450-bedroom hotel would be built on eight storeys, 62m high, overlooking the links from a nearby ridge.
The plan also includes proposals for four blocks of 238 timeshare apartments, also eight storeys high, as well as a golf academy, a convention centre, a club house and 36 golf villas to cater for groups of wealthy golfers, as well as the two areas of land zoned for future development of luxury permanent homes.
Aberdeenshire Council's planning rules stipulate a presumption against housing developments in rural areas.
Mr Cooper stressed that the final plans for the resort development were not expected to be lodged with the council until February, once environmental, transport and economic impact studies had been completed.
Provided the plan is approved, the golf courses and clubhouse could be open by spring 2009, with the resort completed by 2012.
Plans prompt fears of slump for Scottish golf tourism
AS DONALD Trump pushes ahead with plans for his flagship course in Aberdeenshire, many experts in Scotland's golf-tourism industry are questioning whether the development will hurt Scotland's existing courses.
There is concern that Mr Trump - who will market his course heavily in the United States - will cherry-pick from the US golf-tourist market and take business away from "native" Scottish courses.
Experts agree that courses in the north of Scotland - such as Cruden Bay and Royal Dornoch - are sure to benefit. But some worry that the industry as a whole will suffer as golfers choose to remain in the north of the country and skip Scotland's other golf destinations such as Carnoustie, Berwick, Troon and Turnberry.
But Alan Rankin, chief executive of the Scottish Tourism Forum, said Mr Trump would increase the volume of US visitors and help the industry across the country.
He said: "With this level of investment, there is going to be a huge promotional budget and that must be good for Scottish tourism and Scottish golf.
"If the marketing further highlights Scotland as the home of golf, that is a positive issue. I believe it will bring more golfers to Scotland and ensure the return of regular overseas visitors by offering them a new option. With the growth of the world golf market, the new course will not dislodge our other courses".
EBEN HARRELL eharrell 'at' scotsman.com
FOR
'THIS IS ONE OF THE MOST EAGERLY AWAITED PLANNING APPLICATIONS'
THE proposals were given a warm welcome yesterday as a major step in developing the area as a tourist and business destination.
Jennifer Craw, the chief executive of Scottish Enterprise Grampian, said: "This is good news. This is the next formal step in realising the opportunity that the Trump International Golf Links offers this part of the world."
"The arrival of the Trump brand means that we will attract new people to Aberdeen City and Shire and also it will give us much, much wider exposure both nationally and internationally. Tourism already generates around £550 million and supports around 20,000 jobs in Aberdeen City and Shire and it's vital we create the attractions which will draw more visitors in from around the world and help diversify our economy even more.
"We need more quality accommodation and leisure infrastructure and a world-class golf resort to the north of Aberdeen - where we estimate visitors would spend around £400 per day - would help put us on the global map for a reason other than our outstanding oil and gas industry. Such attractions would also create the environment we need to make our area even more of an excellent place to visit, live, work and do business."
Rita Stephen, the development manager of the Aberdeen City and Shire Economic Forum (ACSEF), also backed the plans.
She said: "This is probably one of the most eagerly awaited planning applications in the region's history. ACSEF is committed to creating the right conditions for future growth and the proposals could signal a real step-change in our ability to realise our vision.
"The Trump proposals are big, bold and radical and ACSEF believes they could play an important role in meeting several of our key objectives, most notably, to become a unique destination for business and leisure and to become a world-class strategic location."
AGAINST
'NO CONCESSIONS TO THIS BEAUTIFUL, WILD AREA'
ENVIRONMENTAL groups yesterday expressed concerns about the scale of the development and its location.
Duncan McLaren, chief executive of Friends of the Earth Scotland, said: "We still want to see the details of the environmental impact assessment which are likely to come next year. However, we will be watching this development very closely because we have certainly got concerns, simply because of the size of the development.
"For us there are two things we are going to be watching - what are going to be the traffic impacts of a development this size, and secondly the fact that part of the site which is being looked at is on a site of special scientific interest. It is not yet clear whether that will be affected.
"Any erosion or impact upon those we would certainly have concerns about. We will, however, save our main comments until after we have seen the assessments."
Green MSP Shiona Baird attacked the "incompatibility" of the development with the area.
"There is nothing in the style of the buildings that could be described as sympathetic to the landscape," said the North-east MSP.
"There are no concessions to this beautiful, wild area which Mr Cooper, Mr Trump's representative, readily admits contains exceptional biodiversity.
"The residential development has been thrown in to provide an economic rationale, because the golf course alone will not provide this."
Ms Baird added: "Is this the right kind of development in the right location? A more sound investment for Mr Trump may be in the North-east's renewables industry, but he seems to still be opposed to the offshore wind farm, planned nearby, if it is visible from the hotel. This does not inspire confidence in his understanding of environmental issues and the North-east renewables industry."
RSPB Scotland also warned earlier this year that the wildlife-rich coast of Aberdeenshire could be damaged.
FRANK URQUHART
(furquhart'at'scotsman.com)
Golf resort plans take the next step but opponents still have their objections Conservationists want proper protection for bird species in the area Business interests seem to want the course, but Trump says he will go elsewhere if things get difficult Key quote "Mr Trump is very interested in building something that is going to last way past our lifetimes. It is the biggest thing that has happened to this economy since oil. We understand there are going to be detractors and there are going to be a lot of challenges. If those challenges become insurmountable, then we are going to have to go to plan B." - Ashley Cooper, vice-president for golf developments in the Trump Organisation
Story in full THE stage has been set for a battle between billionaire Donald Trump and environmentalists after the unveiling of a £1 billion masterplan to build "the world's greatest golf resort" on a spectacular stretch of links land in the north-east of Scotland.
Hailed as the largest economic development in the area since the discovery of North Sea oil, Mr Trump's plan is to build two championship golf courses - one capable of hosting the Open Championship and the Ryder Cup - as a lasting legacy to the world of golf.
But although he has largely convinced the business community of the case for development, Mr Trump faces a bigger battle with the Royal Society for Protection of Birds (RSPB) and other conservation organisations determined to ensure proper protection on the environmentally sensitive links on the Menie Estate near Balmedie.
The area is host to hundreds of thousands of seabirds, ducks and divers - most notably guillemots, kittiwakes, common scoters and eiders, and nationally important numbers of red-throated divers.
On shore, the RSPB points out that the sand dunes that stretch in spectacular style from Aberdeen to Ythan are protected for the wide range of plants and invertebrates they hold, not to mention breeding birds including skylarks, lapwings and shelducks.
Concern for the environment increased yesterday after the Trump proposal - already massive - was formally submitted to Aberdeenshire Council.
The original plan talked of a £300 million scheme covering 800 acres. But the outline masterplan is for an extended 1,400-acre site costing more than three times the original development.
The blueprint still includes proposals for two championship courses and a five-star luxury hotel with 450 bedrooms - at the end of a road to be known as Trump Boulevard.
The application also includes plans for a holiday home development of almost 1,000 timeshare condominiums - already dubbed "Trumptown" - and two areas of land, totalling 300 acres, which have been controversially zoned for potential future residential developments for permanent luxury homes.
Mr Trump remained in the United States yesterday as details of his golfing dream were unveiled in a church hall, a few miles from the site of his proposed development.
Ashley Cooper, the vice-president for golf developments in the Trump Organisation, told a press conference the tycoon wanted to transform the stretch of linksland into a golfing Mecca.
But he warned that if planning obstacles proved insurmountable, Mr Trump would look elsewhere.
RSPB Scotland said earlier this year that the wildlife-rich coast of Aberdeenshire could be seriously damaged, and vital bird populations decimated by the development and a planned nearby offshore wind farm.
Ian Francis, RSPB Scotland's Grampian area manager, said: "From our point of view, little has changed today.
"We now need to look at the detail of the outline application, and, we'll submit a response in due course."
Friends of the Earth Scotland and the Green Party have also expressed reservations, although all three groups are keen to see an environmental impact assessment - due early next year - before making their objections formal.
For most, however, Mr Trump's ambitious plans are the best piece of news the area has received in the past decade.
Golfer Colin Montgomerie said: "I know Donald. His money coming to Scotland can only boost Scotland."
Open Championship winner Paul Lawrie said: "If Mr Trump is willing to put that kind of money forward and to build that sort of place, it's got to be good."
Mr Cooper continued: "Simply put, our goal is to build the greatest golf resort development in the world.
"Mr Trump is very interested in building something that is going to last way past our lifetimes. It is the biggest thing that has happened to this economy since oil. We understand there are going to be detractors and there are going to be a lot of challenges. If those challenges become insurmountable, then we are going to have to go to plan B.
"But our focus - and we will work for however long it takes - is to build the greatest mixed-use golf and residential development right here in north-east Scotland."
The outline application shows the detailed layout of the main championship course stretching out along the coast behind the spectacular dunes at the edge of the Menie Estate.
The luxury 450-bedroom hotel would be built on eight storeys, 62m high, overlooking the links from a nearby ridge.
The plan also includes proposals for four blocks of 238 timeshare apartments, also eight storeys high, as well as a golf academy, a convention centre, a club house and 36 golf villas to cater for groups of wealthy golfers, as well as the two areas of land zoned for future development of luxury permanent homes.
Aberdeenshire Council's planning rules stipulate a presumption against housing developments in rural areas.
Mr Cooper stressed that the final plans for the resort development were not expected to be lodged with the council until February, once environmental, transport and economic impact studies had been completed.
Provided the plan is approved, the golf courses and clubhouse could be open by spring 2009, with the resort completed by 2012.
Plans prompt fears of slump for Scottish golf tourism
AS DONALD Trump pushes ahead with plans for his flagship course in Aberdeenshire, many experts in Scotland's golf-tourism industry are questioning whether the development will hurt Scotland's existing courses.
There is concern that Mr Trump - who will market his course heavily in the United States - will cherry-pick from the US golf-tourist market and take business away from "native" Scottish courses.
Experts agree that courses in the north of Scotland - such as Cruden Bay and Royal Dornoch - are sure to benefit. But some worry that the industry as a whole will suffer as golfers choose to remain in the north of the country and skip Scotland's other golf destinations such as Carnoustie, Berwick, Troon and Turnberry.
But Alan Rankin, chief executive of the Scottish Tourism Forum, said Mr Trump would increase the volume of US visitors and help the industry across the country.
He said: "With this level of investment, there is going to be a huge promotional budget and that must be good for Scottish tourism and Scottish golf.
"If the marketing further highlights Scotland as the home of golf, that is a positive issue. I believe it will bring more golfers to Scotland and ensure the return of regular overseas visitors by offering them a new option. With the growth of the world golf market, the new course will not dislodge our other courses".
EBEN HARRELL eharrell 'at' scotsman.com
FOR
'THIS IS ONE OF THE MOST EAGERLY AWAITED PLANNING APPLICATIONS'
THE proposals were given a warm welcome yesterday as a major step in developing the area as a tourist and business destination.
Jennifer Craw, the chief executive of Scottish Enterprise Grampian, said: "This is good news. This is the next formal step in realising the opportunity that the Trump International Golf Links offers this part of the world."
"The arrival of the Trump brand means that we will attract new people to Aberdeen City and Shire and also it will give us much, much wider exposure both nationally and internationally. Tourism already generates around £550 million and supports around 20,000 jobs in Aberdeen City and Shire and it's vital we create the attractions which will draw more visitors in from around the world and help diversify our economy even more.
"We need more quality accommodation and leisure infrastructure and a world-class golf resort to the north of Aberdeen - where we estimate visitors would spend around £400 per day - would help put us on the global map for a reason other than our outstanding oil and gas industry. Such attractions would also create the environment we need to make our area even more of an excellent place to visit, live, work and do business."
Rita Stephen, the development manager of the Aberdeen City and Shire Economic Forum (ACSEF), also backed the plans.
She said: "This is probably one of the most eagerly awaited planning applications in the region's history. ACSEF is committed to creating the right conditions for future growth and the proposals could signal a real step-change in our ability to realise our vision.
"The Trump proposals are big, bold and radical and ACSEF believes they could play an important role in meeting several of our key objectives, most notably, to become a unique destination for business and leisure and to become a world-class strategic location."
AGAINST
'NO CONCESSIONS TO THIS BEAUTIFUL, WILD AREA'
ENVIRONMENTAL groups yesterday expressed concerns about the scale of the development and its location.
Duncan McLaren, chief executive of Friends of the Earth Scotland, said: "We still want to see the details of the environmental impact assessment which are likely to come next year. However, we will be watching this development very closely because we have certainly got concerns, simply because of the size of the development.
"For us there are two things we are going to be watching - what are going to be the traffic impacts of a development this size, and secondly the fact that part of the site which is being looked at is on a site of special scientific interest. It is not yet clear whether that will be affected.
"Any erosion or impact upon those we would certainly have concerns about. We will, however, save our main comments until after we have seen the assessments."
Green MSP Shiona Baird attacked the "incompatibility" of the development with the area.
"There is nothing in the style of the buildings that could be described as sympathetic to the landscape," said the North-east MSP.
"There are no concessions to this beautiful, wild area which Mr Cooper, Mr Trump's representative, readily admits contains exceptional biodiversity.
"The residential development has been thrown in to provide an economic rationale, because the golf course alone will not provide this."
Ms Baird added: "Is this the right kind of development in the right location? A more sound investment for Mr Trump may be in the North-east's renewables industry, but he seems to still be opposed to the offshore wind farm, planned nearby, if it is visible from the hotel. This does not inspire confidence in his understanding of environmental issues and the North-east renewables industry."
RSPB Scotland also warned earlier this year that the wildlife-rich coast of Aberdeenshire could be damaged.
