MSP Visits Fetternear Estate

North East SNP MSP Mark McDonald yesterday (Tuesday 30th August) spent the afternoon at the Fetternear Estate, visiting developments made to the estate by owner David Fyffe.

These include Scotland’s first Rural Business Centre, which provides office space for businesses to encourage them to locate to rural areas to bolster local economies, a scheme which has proven particularly popular with local residents who no longer have to commute into Aberdeen.

Mr. Fyffe actively encourages responsible access to his land for the local, and indeed wider, community and last year, the estate welcomed over 6,000 visitors. Fetternear is also home to Scotland’s longest-running archaeological research project, with work continuing to stabilise and preserve the Bishop’s Palace, once the medieval home of the Bishops of Aberdeen.

In future, there are plans to build a pedestrian bridge over the River Don, to improve access, create a visitor centre and create the North East’s first Residential Centre. Mr. Fyffe also intends to continue work on the Bishop’s Palace, development allotments on the estate and create training pitches for local football teams.

Commenting, Mr McDonald said,

"I was delighted to be shown round the estate at Fetternear, it is clear that David Fyffe is trying to ensure the estate serves as a recreational opportunity for the people of Kemnay, and further afield.

"The plans to enhance visitor experiences to the Bishop's Palace, and to renovate and reinvigorate some of the older buildings on the site are very exciting, and I look forward to seeing them come to fruition.

"It is clear that Fetternear Estate values its role in the wider Kemnay community, and it is great to see such a positive approach being taken by a landowner."