A proposed car showroom on a prominent gap site in West Kilbride has been approved by planners. 

The vacant space opposite the Barony Centre in Main Street was originally approved for a showroom in December 2019, however this was not followed up by the applicant Scott Ramage - who already owns SR Auto Services in the village. 

A new application was lodged in February, despite the previous permission not having expired. 

The land in question has been used as a pop-up garden centre/shop in the past few years, but has sat empty at other times. 

The plan has now been given the green light by planning officials, however several conditions have been attached. 

These include providing more details on finishes, assurances that no car repairs will take place on the site, and that the showroom will be active between 8am and 8pm only.

The planning decision states: "There are numerous residential properties surrounding the proposed car showroom. The building would not overshadow or overlook any of these properties.

"The operation of a car showroom would not generate any significant noise, fumes or smells. The scale of the proposed showroom is small, and it would not generate a significant volume of new road traffic.

"Overall, the effect of the proposed development on the neighbouring residential properties is not considered to be significant and would be similar to that of the other retail uses in the town centre, subject to conditions controlling hours of operation.

"The proposed car showroom would be associated with an existing garage in West Kilbride and it is considered appropriate to attach a condition preventing any car repairs from taking place on site."