RESIDENTS have hit at at the 'dreadful state' of greenfield belt land after a major project was carried out by Scottish Water.

Works were completed at the foot of May Street at the end of November but the grass area adjacent to Largs seafront has been left in a mess.

Community councillor Patricia Perman says the area should have been resurfaced.

She added: "The bottom end of May Street was dug up and how it has been left is a disgrace.

"We've been waiting months for it to be seeded but I don't know why earth isn't put down and the area turfed."

Councillor Ian Murdoch says inclement weather has caused the lengthy delay.

He said: "Because of the time of year, it has not been the right time to seed the area and encourage new grass to grow.

"The area has been fenced off until the weather gets better. The four town councillors were told of this and we all agreed it was the best course of action."

Cllr. Tom Marshall added that the area would be returned to its former glory in the near future.

He said: "It is going to be dealt with.

"They are not going to re-seed the grass at Broomfields until spring but once it grows in, the area will look as good as new."

The improvement work involved the renewal and upgrade of sections of the existing wastewater infrastructure near to the beachfront in Largs so that the network can continue to serve customers and protect the local environment.

A significantly longer, screened outfall pipe - 220 metres in length from shore to sea - has been installed to replace a short storm outfall pipe which was just 80 metres in length.

This now means that combined storm water is screened and can be returned much further out into the deeper sea channel, thereby reducing the potentially negative impact on the seafront bathing water and the wider marine environment.

The overall cost of the extended pipe operation was £2.2m.

A Scottish Water spokesperson said: “Following completion of an important upgrade to the waste water network in Largs, to help protect and enhance water quality in the Firth of Clyde and coastal waters, steps have been taken to ensure that the area used during construction would be returned to its condition before the work started.

“The agreement before the project started was to wait until the weather conditions were milder to ensure the grass seeding is successful.

"Appropriate fencing and signage has been put in place. We would like to thank the community for their understanding during this important upgrade to the waste water network”.