Extension plans have been lodged for the historic Killin and Ardeonaig Parish Church.
Phil Simpson has submitted an application for a single storey extension to the side of the B-listed building along with external alterations, including replacement windows and alterations to windows and the installation of PV panels.
Documents submitted with the application by LDN Architects say the church, originally built in 1744, is now in need of repair and upgrading.
They added: “Its active congregation have prepared an exciting vision for its future.
“A design team lead by LDN Architects carried out a feasibility study during December 2020. This was in response to the Forward in Faith 2020 paper and described as ‘an attempt to prompt thinking, decision making and action to consolidate the growth of the Killin and Ardeonaig Parish Church’.
“The key objective was to improve flexibility, in line with the anticipated evolution of the building as a key community and cultural hub for the parish.”
The congregation’s brief to the architects was said to include: improvements to the welcome area; provision of an arrival meeting place for the congregation to interact and to encourage new visitors to the building; and a new location for a salvaged Tiffany window.
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The original direction of worship (south) was also to be reinstated.
Describing the brief further, the documents added: “The restrictive size of current door creates a bottleneck with no shelter from the elements on arrival. The existing access area creates draughts within an already cold building. A new insulated entrance lobby would improve insulation and reduce the environmental impact of the space.
“Improve visual connection of the church to the outside space, express the ‘open-door’ sense we wish to achieve. Currently visitors have to pass through two thresholds, both of which have no visual connection to the interior, creating obstructions to the perceived accessibility of the church.
“The church is the only flexible space for rent by the community for activities and is used regularly for various bookings such as meetings or Pilates. Currently the single main entrance limits the use of the wider building as all access comes through the main sanctuary space.
“The existing access is via narrow doors, a step and ramps making physical accessibility problematic, this should be improved in terms of accessibility.
“Provide a space that can be used for interpreting the Christian story of the church and locate it in time and history; reduce the overall carbon emissions of the building, improving the existing fabric to reduce use of non-renewable energies; and services to be renewed in full and a review to be undertaken of AV installation to ensure provision meets need.”
Improvements to kitchen and WC facilities were also sought.
Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park planners have yet to make a recommendation on the application.
However, the authority’s built heritage adviser has said: “Unfortunately no changes have been made to the proposal since the pre-application stage.
“The proposed extension would have a significant impact on the view from the north into the conservation area, which is identified as a key view in the Conservation Area Appraisal. Due to the prominent siting at the front corner of the church it would have a significant and adverse impact on the character and appearance of the listed church.
“The advice given at pre-app stage was that this extension could not be supported in this location. The planning officer suggested that the proposed community facility should be in a separate ancillary building. Alternatively consideration could be given to the siting of an extension to the north east (or elsewhere) would still be detrimental and so the pre-app report clarified that if the applicant wished to continue with a proposal for an extension an LVIA [Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment] would need to be submitted so the planning authority can fully consider the impact of this.”
