The land at Lour Road stretches to 3.5 acres and the deal brings to an end a nine-year effort to sell it.

The site sits adjacent to Beech Hill House care home and Forfar Day Care Centre and is also located beside Trust Housing’s Beech Hill Court retirement housing complex.

The site was previously a market garden but it is now heavily overgrown and a two-storey house there has long been boarded up. The site was originally declared surplus to Angus Council requirements in 2013.

In January 2017, an offer of £380,000 was accepted by the council from Axil Estates. However, the deal was dependent on planning permission being granted.

Axil Estates backed out later that year after difficulties arose around the planned use, The Courier reports.

However, after the planning issues were resolved, the council put the site back on the market and five offers came in for the chunk of land.

Angus policy committee councillors have now agreed to accept the highest bid.

The sale was signed off in private and the council has not revealed how much they got. Edinburgh-based Cullross Ltd plans to develop 41 affordable properties for a housing association.

A planning application for the proposed development has not yet been submitted.