Blessing bestowed by council on a new church in Eyemouth
Blessing was recently bestowed on a new place of worship in the Scottish Borders.
At a meeting, members of Scottish Borders Council’s Planning and Building Standards Committee approved the change of use of the dilapidated Isaac House on Armatage Street in Eyemouth into a 120-capacity church.
A design statement for the proposals by The Highway Christian Fellowship said it would “respect the architectural character of the building and surrounding context”.
But five objections were lodged raising issues including noise and an increase in traffic.
The two-storey property located in a narrow lane is in the heart of Eyemouth within its conservation area and next to a listed building, although it is not listed itself.
A planning report for councillors concluded there were no material considerations on which to base a refusal and recommended giving the scheme the green light.
Members approved the application after carrying out a site visit to the building.
Coun Marshall Douglas, SNP for Tweeddale East, said: “There are concerns over parking, although you wonder how many people will actually turn up on a Sunday in large numbers that wouldn’t be using local car parks.
“The building is there already – it’s a storage place and doesn’t look very good as it is, and I think that something needs to be done with the building and you are not going to please everybody all the time.”
Committee chair Coun Simon Mountford added: “I totally agree that the building as it is is an eyesore and the benefits of bringing back an empty, near-derelict building into feasible use and economic use will benefit the whole of Eyemouth.
“As far as the impact on residents in the street, I think there will obviously be an impact but I’m not sure how negative that will be given the mitigations of sound-proofing and opaque windows.
“The worship room is upstairs and sound rises rather than goes across, so I’m not convinced there will be much problem with noise, if any.
“As far as parking, we’re not sure how many will be using it but I would say the average congregation in the Borders on a Sunday is about 40.”