Bishopbriggs’ car dealer given go-ahead for 14 lighting masts and 10ft high signage - despite opposition

A Bishopbriggs branch of car dealership Arnold Clark has been granted planning permission to install advertising signage and lighting masts.

A Bishopbriggs branch of car dealership Arnold Clark has been granted planning permission to install advertising signage and lighting masts.

The dealership on Kirkintilloch Road had submitted two planning applications to East Dunbartonshire Council and these were conditionally approved at a planning board meeting held online on Tuesday, June 23.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

One application was for a total of 14 signs of various types, including illuminated signs, and attracted 24 objections from 21 different addresses near the dealership.

The objections highlighted concerns over noise pollution resulting from existing flagpoles and the additional noise impact these additions may result in, the amount of visual clutter and calls for an equivalent number of signs to be removed prior to erecting the proposed signage.

The conditions imposed with the award of planning permission require the removal of existing flag poles and signage, thereby reducing the number of flag poles on the site and limit the amount of visual clutter.

Planning officers expressed the view that the dealership was sufficiently far away from residential properties, and the area already had a number of street lights, that the internal illumination of these signs would have no adverse impact on residents.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The dealership’s second application for planning permission involved seven three-metre high lighting masts with ground markings for display cars.

This application attracted 26 objections and one neutral representation, coming from 24 residences along Kirkintilloch Road. The objectors claimed that any approved developments should be appropriate and complimentary to the nearby Conservation Area and Town Protection Areas that light pollution could impact nearby homes, and that the lighting may not be properly maintained.

Planning officers were of the opinion that the conservation areas would not be negatively affected, that the lighting would not impact residences and that maintenance of the lighting was not a material consideration for the planning process.

Provost Alan Brown suggested the lights should only be permitted to be in use during the dealership’s opening hours, but Councillor Jim Gibbons pointed out that the intention of the lighting was surely to assist people who wished to look at the vehicles on display in the evenings while the dealership was closed.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“If I’d been wandering around the lot without lights I would have been reported to the police,” he said.

The planning board voted to grant both applications in line with the recommendations from the council’s planning officers.

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.