Almost £100,000 has been set aside by Argyll and Bute Council to develop a full business case for the first project under the Lorn Arc programme.

The funds will allow for an access improvement scheme at Oban Airport to progress, with work expected to commence in September.

The council has already carried out some physical works on the site, such as removing the knotweed and scrub, as well as continuing with ground investigations, which will assist with the design options now underway. Elsewhere, a planning application, masterplan and development brief for the site will now be developed, with the local authority undertaking an economic impact assessment in relation to the long-term viability of the scheme.

Councillor Ellen Morton, Argyll and Bute Council's Policy Lead for Special Projects, said: "This is good news for Oban and Argyll and Bute. The whole Lorn Arc programme has real momentum now and we are keen to keep it going. With these funds the team will be able to develop the business case, ensuring that the project is viable and will bring real benefits.

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"The site at Oban airport is ripe for development and will make a fantastic business park. The council's role is in opening up the site, making the necessary infrastructure improvements and enabling private developers to progress the actual business park element. This programme will act as a real catalyst for change."

Councillor Roddy McCuish, Chair of the Oban, Lorn and the Isles Area Committee, added: "I warmly welcome this news and fully endorse the progress of the Lorn Arc scheme. This is the first of nine projects and I'm eager to see it move forward, with shovels in the ground in September.

"This is key to the economic development of our area – creating jobs and growing the population. The business case will give us as members the comfort that we're spending public money properly and that the project will have real and lasting benefits.

"I'm pleased that we have this decision making framework in place, ensuring that it goes through the local area committee first before coming to policy and resources for final approval, ensuring we best meet the needs of Oban and Lorn but also of the Argyll and Bute council area as a whole."

(JP/IT)