LDRSA former nursing home in Turriff will be transformed into housing for seasonal tree workers.
Artur Wandycz of AK Christmas Tree Contractors lodged plans to turn the former Glenesk House into a base for 22 of his employees.
Glenesk House was closed for the last time in 2015 after Renaissance said it was no longer financially viable.
The former nursing home has been lying empty since.
It has 22 bedrooms and a couple of communal areas, one of which will be converted into a kitchen and dining area.
Mr Wandycz will use the building to house employees for his two firms, Green Team Christmas Trees Ltd and Festive Fir Ltd.
Workers undertake various jobs throughout the year, including planting, pruning, fencing, labelling and harvesting trees.
They will carry out jobs on ten different sites across the north-east.
The businessman argued that the change was needed to house workers together and reduce the amount of travel to the various sites.
However, seven residents living nearby had objected to the proposal.
They stated that the facility had been used this way in the past, and rowdy workers would “loudly and drunkenly” walk to the building.
Others said the “large influx” of people to the quiet community would cause safety worries for those walking around the site.
Meanwhile, road safety was also flagged as a concern.
Despite these objections, Aberdeenshire Council planners recommended that the plan be approved.
They said reusing the building for a house of multiple occupancy was “acceptable”.
The plan recently went before the Formartine area committee.
Councillor Iain Taylor wanted the proposal to be approved.
He said: “The access road is fairly straight, there is another junction there, I don’t think that should prevent any difficulty.
“There was a residential home there previously, so there is a substantial number of accommodations there, and I don’t think this will be much different.”
However, councillor Anne Stirling asked for the application to be deferred to get more information about the plan.
The matter went to a vote that ended in a tie at five votes each.
But the plan was given the go-ahead after committee chairman Councillor Taylor used his casting vote.
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