A CONTROVERSIAL chalet development in the Tweed Valley has been given the green light.

But planning officers have taken out added insurance to prevent the site near Cardrona being used as a residential property.

Fearful neighbours believe the tourism project at Kirkburn is a smoke screen for a house being built.

And they claim that the holiday lodge proposals will turn into a similar scenario where enforcement officers and police were regularly called to an adjacent site during 2009 and 2010 to evict Andrew Cleghorn from a caravan.

The 50-year-old’s companies, which included Cleek Poultry, had erected various structures without permission. And he disobeyed rules over occupancy of the site - at one point barricading himself into his mobile home.

Cleek Lodges Ltd submitted plans in July, 2012, for 3.5 hectares of neighbouring land, which uses the same entrance road to the controversial compound.

Amongst its listed directors is Mr Cleghorn.

The initial proposals are for the erection of a large eight-bed hub house at the entrance to the development site.

Members of the planning committee delayed making a decision on the bid for the hub house and eight smaller holiday lodges last month.

On Monday, following scrutiny of the business case and an explanation why upstairs windows had been included in the single-floor hub house, they agreed to pass the application.

Committee chairman Ron Smith said: “There is concern that if the whole development did not proceed we would be left with a very large house when we haven’t given permission for a residential house in the country.” Cleek Lodges want to build the eight-bed hub house first to help raise capital from its rental for the erection of the smaller lodges. And they did submit alternative plans without upper-floor windows.

But the committee agreed it was more fitting to include the dormers.

Selkirkshire councillor Michelle Ballantyne said: “With such a big roof it would look better with something to break it up. The concern which comes with this application is from the past history of the site. There are fears that we will have to come back to this site in future years.

“From a policy point of view it seems to comply. I say this while sitting here with a sense of discomfort.” Planning chief John Hayward confirmed that conditions attached to the application’s approval were as robust as they could be.

And members also agreed to add an additional informative expressing that the site was only suitable for a holiday development.

Local member Stuart Bell added: “We need to put the maximum leverage behind the condition that there is to be no residential occupancy.”