In today’s edition:
Yes-no decision expected soon on proposed new tram route;
The story of Edinburgh’s ‘north cycle path network’;
Upgrade work begun at Saughton Arena sports complex;
North Bridge reportedly set to fully reopen by August;
Five more ‘firework control zones’ agreed;
Councillors reject proposal to open private gardens to the general public;
Full refurbishment plans announced for Canning Street office block;
Exhibition next week of King’s Theatre history;
Football mural graces Princes Street hoarding;
Further recognition for Edinburgh Futures Institute building;
Listing objection being recommended against possible Westfield Court listing;
Anderson pens peaen to Craigmillar;
Crowdfunder launched for Colinton community hub;
‘Green’ data centres: councillors warned off;
‘Lifeless’ street expected to be ‘transformed’ by student accommodation block approval;
Correction: It’s two shops that were suddenly closed on Princes Street; and
Enjoy, see you next Friday!
Yes-no decision expected soon on proposed new tram route
CITY councillors are to be asked in September whether the plans to build a second tram line in the city (linking Granton in the north with Little France in the south) should proceed or not.
It follows the results of two research exercises - a city council-run online ‘consultation hub’, accompanied by in-person events, and, separately, direct interviews by a market research firm.
Say papers (here) to be considered on Thursday, by the city council’s Transport and Environment committee (here, agenda item 8.1), the council’s ‘consultation hub’, attracted 11,425 responses, while the direct interviews involved 1,209 people.
Broadly, the online consultation exercise delivered mixed results: 53 per cent oppose the whole north-south scheme, 40 per cent support and six per cent neither support nor oppose. And the market research delivered 19 per cent oppose, 47 per cent support and 34 per cent neither support nor oppose.
Section 4.12 of the papers provides details of all the options, including the northern leg of the proposed line going along either Roseburn Path or Orchard Brae.
The papers add: “The outputs from the consultation and market research will inform a strategic business case that is being developed and will be presented to Transport and Environment committee on September 20 when councillors will be asked for a decision on next steps for the trams from Granton to BioQuarter and beyond.
“This could include proceeding with all or any element of the proposal to outline business case stage, subject to funding; proceeding with workstreams to amend the current proposal, subject to funding; ceasing and / or pausing temporarily work on the project.”
It is understood there is no requirement for the Transport and Environment committee to have its decision about the strategic business case ratified (or otherwise) by the full city council.
The story is picked up by, among others, Edinburgh Live website, here.
And The Edinburgh Inquirer’s reading of the papers is Edinburgh ‘warming’ to the proposals (here).
The Scotsman newspaper quotes Cllr Stephen Jenkinson, convener of the Transport and Environment committee, describing the polls findings as “fairly inconclusive” (here).
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, it was being reported that Scottish Government agency, Historic Environment Scotland, have raised concerns about the integrity of Dean Bridge, were the Orchard Brae option to be pursued.
Writes The Herald’s Josh Pizzuto-Pomaco, here, HES is also concerned about the integrity of both North Bridge and South Bridge, for a possible southern leg of the proposed tram line.
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The story of Edinburgh’s ‘north cycle path network’
THE story of one of Edinburgh’s first cycle paths - the ‘north Edinburgh cycle path network’ - is being told by local historian, Andy Arthur, on his website, Threadedinburgh (here).
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Upgrade work begun at Saughton Arena sports complex
WORK has begun, upgrading the athletics facilities at the Saughton Arena sports complex.
Announcing the work, here, operators, Edinburgh Leisure, said: “Funded by The City of Edinburgh Council, the investment will support the long-term future of a site that plays a vital role in the city’s athletics network. [Governing body] Scottish Athletics has identified Edinburgh as one of eight priority regions in its national facilities strategy, underlining the importance of protecting and improving provision in this part of the city.”
The work began on Monday.
The story is picked up by the Edinburgh Evening News newspaper, here.
In February, BuildEdinburgh posted the idea (here) of reconfiguring the area largely for housing, to help pay for the construction of a spectator stand (and associated facilities, such as changing rooms, club rooms and a cafe) along the length of the touchline of the 11-a-side artificial grass pitch.
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North Bridge reportedly set to fully reopen by August
NORTH Bridge is reportedly set to fully reopen by the start of the Edinburgh Festivals in August - following years of restoration work
Begins The Herald newspaper’s Josh Pizzuto-Pomaco, here: “Eight years after work first began on Edinburgh’s North Bridge, the finish line is finally in sight. Last week, The Herald was granted an exclusive first look at the renovated Victorian-era behemoth.”
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Five more ‘firework control zones’ agreed
FIVE new ‘firework control zones’ have been approved, bringing the total to 14 areas where private fireworks are restricted around Bonfire Night.
The new ‘zones’ are Liberton Grange, Lochend, Stenhouse/Gaskell Street, West Pilton and Wester Hailes.
They join already-operating (from last year) Corstorphine, Longstone, Moredun, Sighthill/Broomhouse and The Murrays (previously called Gracemount), plus (from two years’ ago) Niddrie, Seafield, Balerno and Calton Hill.
Says the city council, here: “The decision builds on the positive impact of previous years’ measures, with Edinburgh experiencing significantly lower levels of firework-related anti-social behaviour compared with earlier years.”
The story is picked up by, among others, STV, here.
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Councillors reject proposal to open private gardens to the general public
COUNCILLORS have rejected a proposal to open private New Town gardens - on a voluntary basis - to the public in exchange for council maintenance and insurance support.
It followed a motion submitted by Scottish Greens councillor, Cllr Dan Heap, which was considered by Monday’s city council’s Culture and Communities committee (here, agenda item 5.1) - which requested a report by December on the viability of such a scheme, which has taken inspiration from St Andrew Square which has been open to the public since 2008.
But it was voted down, six-to-five. The story has been picked up by, among others, The Herald and The Scotsman newspapers, here and here.
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Full refurbishment plans announced for Canning Street office block
AN office block on Canning Street is set to be fully refurbished, following its purchase by a Scottish property company.
Says Knight Property Group, here, about Atholl Exchange: “[We are] set to undertake a comprehensive refurbishment and repositioning programme, aimed at enhancing the quality and occupier experience within the building. Planned works include the full refurbishment of the vacant floors, upgrades to the atrium, common parts and improvements to the external frontage.”
The story is picked up by the website, Urban Realm, here.
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Exhibition next week of King’s Theatre history
A FREE exhibition about the history of the King's Theatre, in Tollcross, is taking place ahead of its imminent reopening.
It is being held next week at Barclay Viewforth Church, Monday to Thursday (10am to 5pm) and Friday (10am to 4pm).
For more details: here.
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Football mural graces Princes Street hoarding
A PORTRAIT of Scotland footballer, Scott McTominay, has appeared on a hoarding on Princes Street - ahead of the national team playing in the FIFA World Cup, its first match taking place over the weekend.
The hoarding has been erected in front of a gap site (following a demolition) that is scheduled to be taken up by a Ruby Group hotel.
This photo was taken on Tuesday afternoon.
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Further recognition for Edinburgh Futures Institute building
AN Edinburgh building that was named two weeks ago (here) among ten winners of an awards competition run by the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS), has been twice further recognised.
The Edinburgh Futures Institute - by Bennetts Associates - has taken two of seven ‘special category’ prizes at the awards: innovation and interior design.
Read more, here.
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Listing objection being recommended against possible Westfield Court listing
THE city council is being asked to lodge an objection should a high-rise block of flats in Gorgie be protected from demolition by a listing from the Scottish Government agency, Historic Environment Scotland (HES).
News that HES might apply a listing to Westfield Court - in which the city council is a ‘minority owner’ - was enough to recently convince members of the city council’s Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work committee (here) to pause a scheme to ‘buyback’ properties in the block, in order to gain a majority to proceed with demolition.
It has been estimated the refurbishment costs for the block are around £500,000 per flat.
The recommendation to ‘object’ can be found in papers (here) being presented to the city council’s Planning committee on Wednesday (here, agenda item 7.3).
The story is picked up by the website, The Edinburgh Reporter, here.
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Anderson pens peaen to Craigmillar
A PEAEN to Craigmillar has been penned by former city council leader, Donald Anderson.
In a column published by the Edinburgh Evening News, here, he writes of sometimes considerable improvement on many fronts: population numbers, life expectancy, employment / unemployment, education attainment levels, car ownership and - significantly - crime.
He also praises the volunteer effort that’s taking place there.
Anderson has a regular, weekly column in the Edinburgh Evening News.
He currently volunteers in Craigmillar, as chair of The Eastern Synergy Group, which brings together ‘Third Sector’ organisations in the area.
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Crowdfunder launched for Colinton community hub
A CROWDFUNDER has been launched to complete the fit-out of a community hub in Colinton.
A target £50,000 is being sought for the hub, which is located in Spylaw Park, for residents in both Colinton and the wider south-west of Edinburgh.
Donate here.
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‘Green’ data centres: councillors warned off
CITY councillors have been warned off seeking to impose a moratorium on the building of ‘green’ data centres.
On Wednesday, members of the council’s Planning committee will also hear (here, agenda item 7.1) - from officers (here) - that the council should not provide its own definition of what a ‘green’ data centre is.
The move follows members of the council’s Development Management sub-committee rejecting a planning-in-principle application (here, 25/04239/PPP) for such a centre, on Redheughs Avenue - as reported, here, on BuildEdinburgh.
There was also an approved motion at a full council meting in March (here, agenda item 8.5) seeking a definition of a ‘green’ data centre.
The story is picked up by The Herald newspaper, here.
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‘Lifeless’ street expected to be ‘transformed’ by student accommodation block approval
BEGINS local architects, 7N Architects, here: “We are delighted that our proposal for student accommodation [here, ref: 25/05524/FUL] for the Ardent Group at Russell Road has been approved by The City of Edinburgh’s Planning committee*.
“The 182-room brownfield development, adjacent to the council’s new cycle path between Roseburn and the Union Canal, will transform a lifeless street and bring new activity to the area.”
* It was Development Management sub-committee, on Wednesday: here, agenda item 7.1. It was approved by a 7-2 vote.
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Correction: It’s two shops that were suddenly closed on Princes Street
LAST week, BuildEdinburgh reported that a trio of adjacent shops had suddenly closed on Princes Street.
That seemed to be the case, last week, but - when we checked on Wednesday - one of the three, 7DaySmart, was open and operating.
Apologies for any inconvenience. The two closed are: House of Treasure and The Edinburgh Gift Vault.
Last week’s BuildEdinburgh has been amended.
Image details: St Andrew’s Catholic Church; copyright Mike Wilson