Borders council hoping to buy estate near Tweedbank to have houses built on

If such a sale can be agreed, it would enable Scottish Borders Council to press ahead with proposals in its local development plan to have 300 homes built on 40 hectares of land there.

Councillors agreed that move during a behind-closed-doors session of their full meeting last Thursday.

The authority’s Tweedbank masterplan identifies potential for new residential and business space development on the estate.

It also flags up opportunities to expand the village and rebrand and extend the current industrial estate as Borders Innovation Park.

Mid Berwickshire councillor Mark Rowley, the authority’s executive member for business and economic development, said: “Any discussions and negotiations around the purchase of land are clearly commercially sensitive and therefore we cannot go into detail. However, following discussions over a period of time, the council has now taken the opportunity to get a decision to proceed to more formal negotiations with the owners of the estate.”

“There are clear benefits to this strategic site being in the council’s ownership and control in terms of facilitating the development of the land in line with the local development plan and futureproofing for an extension of the Borders Railway.

“Clearly, this is a long-term strategy, and negotiations around the potential purchase of the site are a first step and one which must be handled sensitively and dealt with in private.”