THE former Tony Macaroni building in Irvine has moved one step closer to being brought back into use.

It comes after planning bosses at North Ayrshire Council approved proposals brought forward for the building formerly occupied by the Italian restaurant chain.

The premises at the Riverway Retail Park has been vacant for over a year after the old Tony Macaroni ceased operation in May of last year.

However, hope was provided that the former restaurant would be back in use soon after a planning application was brought to the council last month.

And these proposals have now been approved with no further conditions added by planning chiefs.

It now appears that not just one but two businesses could be set to move into the building.

That is because the application, brought forward on behalf of Irvine Nominees Ltd, was seeking permission to divide the building into two separate units, with different businesses occupying each one. 

With plans now approved, one part of the building will remain as a hospitality unit, with the formal application stating that the intended use is as a coffee shop.

The other half of the building has been earmarked for use as a travel agent's shop.

No further detail is provided on whether the units will be occupied by existing businesses with premises elsewhere, or whether they will be independently operated by new retailers.

New front entrances will be created for each unit, with these to be located  seating area for the smaller of the two separate units. The entrance for the larger unit would remain at the previous front porch.

Irvine Times: A planning application has been submitted which could see the former Tony Macaroni restaurant in

The application does not explicitly state which business would be moving into which unit.

A separate application is to be submitted at a later date in relation to signage for both businesses.

The approved plans can be viewed in full via the council's online planning portal searching for reference 24/00399/PP.