Plans to construct a £90m development on the former site of Napier University campus has been approved by Edinburgh Council.

The proposals will see 145 properties built on the Craighouse site, of which 64 will be created by converting the 16th and 19th Century buildings on the land.

An application for the development was first submitted by Craighouse Partnership, a consortium of Mountgrange Investment, Sundial Properties and Napier University, in 2011. However, the plans have been redesigned twice in order to address concerns from the local community.

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Led by the group Friends of Craighouse, some 2,000 objections were collected and submitted against the plans, but following a meeting earlier this week, Edinburgh Council agreed to support the development.

Councillor Ian Perry, Planning Convener, is quoted as saying: "This has been a very difficult decision for the Committee to make and I appreciate that not everyone will be happy.

"The Committee's main concern was to protect the listed buildings from further deterioration and I believe that this was the best outcome for the site.

"During the three years that this proposal has been discussed, the developer has taken on board some concerns from the local community such as significantly reducing the number of houses to be built on the site.

"The developer has also agreed to hand over 80% of the land to allow the public to access open space and woodland."

Rosy Barnes, Friends of Craighouse, said the organisation was "disappointed" in the decision.

(JP/IT)