JUDY Murray and Ann Gloag, two of the most powerful women in Scotland, are engaged in a furious battle over a proposed development for a historic piece of land in Stirlingshire. But while the two attempt to score points, locals claim they feel "under seige" and caught in the middle due to a planning process that takes power out of their hands.
The feud developed last week at a public enquiry into plans for a controversial multi-million pound tennis and golf centre - which will include a hotel and luxury housing - on the greenbelt Park of Keir between Dunblane and Bridge of Allan. Yet the proposal spearheaded Judy Murray was attacked by representatives for Ann Gloag's company, Arnbathie Developments, who accused the development of failing to meet criteria that will make it of public benefit.
Read more: Ann Gloag accused of setting 'legal attack dog' on Judy Murray's tennis hub bid
Murray's vision – which includes a12-court tennis centre, six course training golf course, 19 luxury houses, a 150-bedroom hotel and museum celebrating Andy and Jamie's success – was rejected by Stirling Council in December 2015. Despite backing of golf champion Colin Montgomerie, Sir Alex Ferguson and Tennis Scotland, locals registered over 1000 objections, arguing that the Park of Keir was prized as an undeveloped green space.
However Murray appealed to the Scottish Government to "call in" plans resulting in a public enquiry which finished on Friday. A decision is due in coming months.
Meanwhile locals have also raised objections to Ann Gloag's plans to build 129 "self-contained and discreet" houses on land next to the Park of Keir.
Read more: Letters: Judy Murray is trying to ride roughshod over planning system
Residents-turned-campaigners told the Sunday Herald they were disillusioned and exhausted by fighting plans that went against the democratic process.
Ann Shaw, of Residents Against Green Belt Erosion (RAGE), who has been campaigning to stop development on the site for 27 years said it was the third public enquiry that had taken place over Park of Keir. "Now Judy Murray comes with celebrity status and it feels like planning legislation doesn't count," she said. "Why does she need to develop a tennis centre on this site? This has to be one of the most controversial bits of land in Scotland. We are not against Murray but we want to keep this green field site. The strength of objection - and the people who are supporting us - shows that there has to be a real issue here."
With 59 tennis courts and 19 golf clubs within 15-mile radius of Park of Keir, there is no local demand for the facility, she insisted there was no local demand.
Mark Ruskell, Green MSP, said the local community had lost faith in the planning system and felt "stuck in the middle". "There have been repeated attempts to develop the site," he added. "In response local development plans have been enabled by the local council and its put in place a strong green belt. Now we have someone coming along who says "I don't care about the democratic process", and just decides to push it through."
Community groups have given up hundreds of hours, and raised almost £8k to pay for legal representation, he claimed and said that despite legislation such as the Community Empowerment and Land Reform Acts in the last year faith in the planning system locally was "at rock bottom.
"It's a desirable area and subject to speculative development. The community feels under siege; it stuck in the middle."
?Angus Hardie, director of the Scottish Community Alliance, said reform was needed to make the planning process more democratic.
Read more: Judy Murray’s tennis and golf centre is ‘not sustainable’, says Green MSP
"The government says it wants communities to become involved at an early stage in the planning process, and so avoid any need to have the right to appeal against planning decisions," he said. "Park of Keir just illustrates the problem with this.
"The community has been a model of early engagement and the planning decision went in their favour - but the developers just will not give up. If it wasn't for the skills, knowledge and dogged determination of a few local activists, the community voice would be lost."
Alston Birnie, of the Park of Keir Partnership, said: "We believe that Park of Keir is an exciting and ambitious project that will provide great healthy sporting opportunities for the surrounding communities, in a way that is sympathetic to the local environment. The eight-day inquiry by the DPEA covered all the arguments for and against the project and the opponents of the scheme have, as they always have, made their case robustly."
A spokeswoman for Ann Gloag said she did not wish to comment.
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