Investigation launched into bogus planning objections
Efforts are under way to trace the source of bogus planning objections, submitted in an attempt to derail plans for a 92-bed hotel in the centre of Kirkwall.
Following a story published in The Orcadian this week, it has emerged that an objection purported to be sent from the former proprietor of the Kirkwall Hotel is false.
That objection, and another claiming to be from the owner of the Stromness Hotel, has now been removed from Orkney Islands Council’s planning portal, where the documents were publicly available.
Orkney Islands Council (OIC) has launched an investigation into the matter — which is believed to be the first incident of its kind in since the introduction of a digital planning portal here.
An OIC spokeswoman said: “Orkney Islands Council has been made aware that objections to planning application 25/390/PP (proposed hotel development, former Jewson Yard, Junction Road, Kirkwall), submitted through the council’s online public access system, have used names and local business addresses without their knowledge or consent.
“Upon being contacted by the affected persons and businesses, the council immediately removed the representations and are now investigating the submissions, including working to trace their source.
“The council is not aware of any other occurrences of this nature since the introduction of the online planning system in 2008.
“The matter will be raised in the national heads of planning network.”
In December, Stephen Kemp, managing director of Orkney Builders (Contractors) Ltd, submitted plans to create a hotel on the site of the former Jewson’s yard.
The ambitious plans — if approved by council planners — could see a four-storey hotel and eight flats built on the site on Junction Road.
In this week’s newspaper, The Orcadian published a story homing in on objections to the major development in the heart of Kirkwall, which includes an objection from the Ayre Hotel, which remains on the planning portal website.
The Kirkwall Hotel has made it clear that they did not and have not objected to Mr Kemp’s plans, and would like to distance themselves from the spurious objection.
Mr Kemp has said that the “strange” bogus objections are something he has “never seen before.”
“I guess it’s just someone mischief-making,” said Mr Kemp.
“The whole thing is a bit naive, as Orkney’s a small place and we of course know the former owner of the Kirkwall really well, but the person who did this obviously didn’t know that.”