In the news, w/e May 29
In today’s edition:
‘Affordability’ requirement to be investigated for student accommodation projects;
Planning application resubmitted for three-flat block on Bath Road;
Bingo hall conversion plans lodged;
Two Edinburgh buildings named winners in architectural award;
New president named at architects’ body;
New president for Edinburgh architects’ body;
Building procurement concerns voiced;
Youth homelessness charity receives keys towards ‘supported accommodation’ programme;
Refurbishment plans announced by the National Galleries of Scotland;
‘Tram Train’ scheme takes another step forward;
Future of Westfield Court thrown into doubt by ‘listing’ possibility;
Fountain Park pub plan reportedly withdrawn;
Former St Stephen’s Church reportedly for sale;
Green light given for Gorgie ‘apart-hotel’ proposal;
Work begins on new Edinburgh Park neighbourhood;
The tale of the former Bonnington Bridge bar;
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Enjoy, see you next week!
‘Affordability’ requirement to be investigated for student accommodation projects
PURPOSE-built student accommodation proposals could soon face having to fall into line with other forms of new-build residential housing projects, by allocating 35 per cent of their schemes as ‘affordable’.
It follows a motion at a meeting last week of the full council (here, agenda item 8.9).
It called for an affordable threshold to be investigated by council officers.
The motion - by the SNP - also accepted a Scottish Greens addendum that “alternative management models for PBSA developments, such as housing co-operatives” be explored.
Councillors heard of students being homeless, not least because of monthly rents of upwards of £1,400.
At the start of the meeting, members heard a deputation from Living Rent, which describes itself as ‘a tenants and community union’ (from the 0:30:40 mark on the meeting webcast, here).
There was also debate whether PBSA should also begin to pay business rates.
The story is picked up by Deadline News website, here. There’s a biggish feature too about it on the website, Edinburgh Inquirer, here.
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Planning application resubmitted for three-flat block on Bath Road
A PLANNING application has been resubmitted - for a gap site on Bath Road, just off Salamander Street.
The application - here, ref: 26/01831/FUL - has had to be resubmitted because a previous, approved application had expired.
This application is for three flats and an extension to a neighbouring pub.
The architect is John Kinsley - arguably been known for a collective self-build project on Portobello’s Bath Street.
The story is picked up by the Edinburgh Evening News newspaper, here.
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Bingo hall conversion plans lodged
PLANS have been lodged to convert a former bingo hall in the Southside into a cafe and occasional event space.
The application can be viewed, here (ref: 26/01757/FUL).
The story is picked up by the Edinburgh Evening News newspaper, here.
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Two Edinburgh buildings named winners in architectural award
TWO Edinburgh buildings have been named among ten buildings chosen by architects body, the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS), as winners of its annual awards.
The ten will be further shortlisted, from which one will be chosen as Scotland’s Building of the Year - announced towards the end of the year - aka the RIAS Andrew Doolan Best Building in Scotland Award.
The two are (1) Usher Building, University of Edinburgh, by Hassell; and the Edinburgh Futures Institute, by Bennetts Associates.
Read more, here.
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New president named at architects’ body
AN associate director at local architects, Reiach and Hall, has been named the new president of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS).
Libby Heathcote succeeds Karen Anderson, as noted here, on the RIAS website.
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New president for Edinburgh architects’ body
MEANWHILE, the Edinburgh ‘chapter’ of the RIAS has chosen a new president to succeed Neil Middleton, whose two-year term of office has come to an end.
Emma Garland - an associate director at architects, ema - has been chosen by the Edinburgh Architecture Association.
Middleton reflects on his two years in post, here.
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Building procurement concerns voiced
ALSO from the RIAS, it has voiced concerns about how buildings are procured - not least the possible safety implications of buildings chosen primarily on cost grounds.
It follows a consultation exercise hosted by the Scottish Government, here, which ended on the fifth of this month.
Among other things, the RIAS notes (here) the collapse of a wall at Oxgangs Primary School, ten years ago, which led to an inquiry, here.
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Youth homelessness charity receives keys towards ‘supported accommodation’ programme
THE keys to three one-bedroom flats across Edinburgh - with the keys soon due for two more - have been received by a charity, to help provide young people facing homelessness with ‘supported accommodation’.
Says youth homelessness charity, the Rock Trust, here, the flats are part of its ‘Bedrock programme’.
The story is picked up, here, by the website, Scottish Housing News.
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Refurbishment plans announced by the National Galleries of Scotland
THE National Galleries of Scotland building on The Mound is to undergo a refurbishment, including a “refreshed suite of galleries and displays”.
It follows a strategy document, for the next four years, which says the NGS’s ‘biggest priority’ is to complete a project in Granton, opening up an estimated 130,000 items (currently mostly in storage) to the general public.
Says NGS, here: “Our biggest priority over the next four years will be to complete The Art Works. This transformational project will enable us to share the nation’s art with even more people now and in the future. The Art Works building, and everything it makes possible, will significantly advance all three of our strategic priorities: Audience, Collection and Resilience.”
The story is picked up - as an ‘exclusive’ by Brian Ferguson - of The Herald newspaper, here.
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‘Tram Train’ scheme takes another step forward
CITY council officials have been tasked with approaching the Scottish Government agency, Transport Scotland, to apply for feasibility study funding, to explore the possibility of reopening the South Suburban rail line to passenger traffic.
A local ‘Tram Trains’ campaign is campaigning not just for the reopening of the line, but for it to connect with the city’s tram service - using vehicles that can switch from one type of line to the next - thus creating a ‘Tram Train’ loop around the city.
At a meeting of the full council last week, a feasibility study proposal (agenda item 8.13, here) was passed.
During the run-up to the Scottish Parliament elections at the beginning of the month - which returned a SNP-led government - the SNP manifesto called for a feasibility study (as noted, here, on BuildEdinburgh).
The ‘Tram Trains’ scheme was first mooted by engineering students at Heriot-Watt University, here.
In a media release issued by the campaign, its chair, Rob Falcon, is quoted, as saying: “The city council directly requesting that the Scottish Government funds the feasibility study, represents a further milestone in getting this project done for the benefit of the city and the wider Lothian region.
“The voting in the council indicated broad support for the project across the political parties, in a way not demonstrated before. We urge the council to set ambitious objectives and keep up the pressure on the newly elected government."
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Future of Westfield Court thrown into doubt by ‘listing’ possibility
THE possible demolition of a high-rise block of flats in Gorgie has been thrown into doubt by news of a report being prepared by Scottish Government agency, Historic Environment Scotland (HES), into whether the building should be protected with a ‘listing’.
According to papers (here) to be considered on Monday at a meeting of the city council’s Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work committee (here, agenda item 4.4), the estimated cost of repairing Westfield Court (pictured below, in which the council is a ‘minority owner’) leaves only one possible course of action: demolition and reuse of the site.
Repairs have been estimated at £500,000 per property, ie £48m for the whole block.
But the council has learned that HES is preparing a report (expected soon) that could lead to the building being ‘listed’, potentially leaving all involved in a quandary as to what to do next.
The story is picked up by The Edinburgh Reporter website, here, and the Edinburgh Evening News newspaper, here.
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Fountain Park pub plan reportedly withdrawn
A PLANNED Wetherspoons pub in Fountain Park - in a former ‘brewhouse’, that’s been empty for the last two years - has reportedly been withdrawn, because of ‘commercial reasons’.
Writes Ross Chalmers, on the website, Deadline News, here: “J D Wetherspoon abandoned plans to take over the site of the well-known McCowan’s Brewhouse, which closed in 2024, at the eleventh hour, after a licence had been acquired and planning applications lodged.
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Former St Stephen’s Church reportedly for sale
THE former St Stephen’s Church at the bottom of St Vincent Street, in Stockbridge - that has been more recently a performance space - has reportedly been put up for sale.
Reports Jane Bradley, here in The Scotsman newspaper, the asking price is at least £3m.
Says the Daily Business website, here: “The A-listed St Stephens in Edinburgh’s Stockbridge area was built in 1828 by the architect, William Henry Playfair. Since 1966, it has hosted regular Fringe performances.
“Leslie Benzies, former president of the company behind the smash-hit, Grand Theft Auto game, bought it in 2014 to preserve the building for community use.
“For the past nine years, it has been owned by Danish ballet dancer, director and choreographer, Peter Schaufuss, who previously ran the now-closed Rose Theatre on Rose Street. He has put St Stephens on the market for £3 million.”
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Green light given for Gorgie ‘apart-hotel’ proposal
AN ‘apart-hotel’ - comprising 23 apartments - has been approved for Gorgie Road (Nos 93-101).
The application - here, ref: 26/00427/FUL - is a re-submission, following a rejection last year for a 28 serviced apartments scheme (here, ref: 25/01224/FUL).
The site is currently offices for a taxi firm.
The approval was given on Wednesday by the city council’s Development Management sub-committee, here (agenda item 4.15).
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Work begins on new Edinburgh Park neighbourhood
WORK has begun on the construction of the first phase of what is expected to be a new neighbourhood within the wider Edinburgh Park development area, in the west of the city.
Says a media release issued by S1 Developments: “The New Village, led by Edinburgh-based S1 Developments, will form part of real estate investment group Parabola’s wider multi-million-pound regeneration of Edinburgh Park.
“Bank of Scotland’s funding has enabled the commencement of the first phase of properties at The New Village, comprising 146 private homes for sale. The all-electric homes include studio, one, two and three-bedroom apartments and mews houses, with views across either a landscaped courtyard or the Pentland Hills.
“Residents will have access to the wider amenities and cultural attractions planned for Edinburgh Park, including a multi-sport recreation area, a square with cafes, a children’s play area, offices, an art trail featuring works by Sir Eduardo Paolozzi, hotels and Edinburgh’s first indoor arena, the 8,500-capacity AEG Arena.
“The development is well-connected to the city centre and airport by public transport, and is already home to leading independent bakery, Patina.”
The release adds: “Once complete, S1 Developments will deliver 397 new homes at The New Village, with a further 160 affordable units being delivered in tandem by social enterprise, Places for People.
“The development will supplement Edinburgh Park’s wider delivery of a further 864 rental properties, including more than 200 proposed mid-market rent homes.”
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The tale of the former Bonnington Bridge bar
THE story of the now derelict (not least because of fire damage) Bonnington Bridge bar on Newhaven Road is being told by local historian, Andy Arthur, on his Threadinburgh website, here.
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Main image details: Wardie; copyright all images Mike Wilson