Falkirk Council land sale could bring McDonald's drive-thru to Haggs

The land sits very close to Junction 7 of the A80/M80, beside the former Haggs Tavern, which is now derelict.

The site that is owned by the council is a long thin section of ground, with some trees and bushes, a bus stop and a narrow access to the former public house.

Crucially, the council-owned land is needed to access the wider site beyond, including the Haggs Tavern, which is part of the proposed development site, but it is not owned by the council.

A second drive-thru planned for the site is understood to be a Starbucks.

At next week’s meeting of Falkirk Council’s executive, councillors will be asked to agree the sale of the 310 square metres of land for £365,000.

This price has been verified as representing best value by the District Valuer.

According to the report going to councillors on Tuesday, the sale of the land is just the latest stage in years of negotiations with several landowners.

Dundas Heritable Tenancies Ltd approached the council and other the other landowners involved several years ago outlining their development proposals and seeking to negotiate the necessary acquisitions.

The report says it has taken the developers “several years to secure the appropriate terms with the various owners to assemble the site to enable the wider development to take place”.

Any sale would be subject to simultaneous conclusion of missives with the operator developer (McDonalds Restaurants Ltd) for the purchase of the adjoining site.

The report also states that the proposed development is subject to Dundas Heritable Tenancies obtaining planning permission and other statutory consents.

Councillors will be asked to make the decision about the site when the executive meets on Tuesday, April 16 at 10 am in Grangemouth Community Education Unit, Abbot’s Road. The meeting will also be livestreamed by Falkirk Council on YouTube.