A MAJOR application for 50 houses in Pool of Muckhart is set to go before elected members tomorrow morning.

On Thursday, January 23, elected members on the Planning Committee will be asked to approve the plans, subject to a raft of conditions, for the former bowling green and adjoining land at Greenloan.

The planning service is looking to attach more than a dozen conditions to the plans along with a section 75 agreement.

This agreement would place a duty on the developers to include 12 affordable homes on the site and contribute £307,000 toward the provision of primary school works as well as local path improvements.

It would also include the implementation of a traffic management scheme on the A91 and £25,000 toward the enhancement of the existing play area in Muckhart.

The 4.5-hectare site for the development is located to the southeast of Pool of Muckhart with a narrow frontage to the south side of the A91.

Documents for tomorrow's meeting explained: "The houses would generally be located in the eastern and southern portions of the site with the western area retained as wetland.

"The houses are generally detached, two-storey or 1.5-storey, and a mix of three, four and five bedrooms.

"The housing mix includes 12 affordable homes, laid out in three short terraces in the southern part of the site.

"Three of these units would be single storey, and three of the private houses are also single storey.

"House designs and finishes generally reflect a Scottish vernacular and Muckhart Conservation Area."

A new road would serve the development with a junction at the A91 and council papers say the proposals are an opportunity "to provide betterment" in sustainable drainage systems (SUDs) in order to address surface water flood risk.

There was a large number of representations made in respect of the development, one for each house proposed.

One highlighted the council's own Local Development Plan (LDP) only identified 35 houses for the site and raised concerns over the impact an increase could have on the character and infrastructure of the village.

Responding, council papers said that while an increase would be involved, the 35 houses cited "represents a very low density across a site of this size".

And added: "In summarising consideration of the proposed site capacity for the LDP, the reporter, appointed by Scottish Ministers, noted that the density, based on 35 units was very low (around 5.3 dwellings per hectare), albeit across the larger site."

The commentary went on to say: "There are currently no proposals for the remaining part of the LDP site and this application must be determined on its individual merits.

"In assessing the site layout and design, there is no compelling planning reason to indicate that the site cannot adequately accommodate the number and mix of houses proposed."