Edinburgh Architecture News in 2016, Lothian Buildings, Architects, Images, Scotland, Design
Edinburgh Building News 2016
Scottish Architectural + Construction Updates – East of Scotland Property
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Edinburgh Architecture News 2016
Edinburgh News Archive
Edinburgh Printmakers Funding News
19 Apr – Edinburgh Printmakers is poised to meet its £11m funding target for a new creative hub after securing a £1.9m grant from the Scottish government.
Craigmillar Student Accommodation
19 Apr – A disused office on Mayfield Road, Edinburgh, is to be demolished to allow development of 83 self-contained studio flats for students designed by Kenneth Reid Architects.
St Anne’s Parish Church
18 Apr – Extension to A-listed St Anne’s Parish Church in Corstorphine designed by LDN Architects, following a decision to consolidate operations.
Faults in all 17 Edinburgh Schools
15 Apr – Building defects and flaws have been uncovered in all 17 schools in Edinburgh closed for safety reasons earlier this month and some could remain closed until the summer, the council has revealed.
It has also emerged that the buildings not inspected by the city council before they were deemed safe.
City of Edinburgh Council leader, Andrews Burns, said the local authority had “undertaken all its legal responsibilities” and the schools had met “all the relevant building standards”.
He warned that some of the buildings may remain closed until PPP contractor Edinburgh Schools Partnership (ESP) could assure the council that they were safe and this could be after the summer holidays.
Andrews Burns said: “Edinburgh Schools Partnership (ESP) and its agents self-certified to the council, as they were entitled to do so, that the buildings complied with all the relevant building standards.”
Johnstone Town Hall Award News
15 Apr – Johnstone Town Hall in Renfrewshire has received the coveted Project of the Year Award at theRICS Scotland Awards 2016.
The town hall is an iconic £14.5 million modern facility delivering integrated services for the community and was also recognised for its positive impact in local area taking the Community Benefit category award.
Held at the Sheraton Grand Hotel & Spa in Edinburgh yesterday, the RICS annual awards celebrate inspirational initiatives across the built environment. The Project of the Year Award is presented to the project which has been judged overall as an excellent example of best practice by professionals working in both the built and natural environments.
Chair of RICS Scotland judging panel, Colin Smith MRICS, said: “Johnstone Town Hall embraces the very essence of the RICS Property Awards. Not only does the project deliver a town hall which exceeds expectations, its design forms a well-mannered civic intervention which complements the local heritage and acts as a catalyst for wider investment in Johnstone’s town centre regeneration. The project team demonstrated an exceptional procurement methodology and from its very inception there was a real focus on exhausting all opportunities to engage with the community.”
The building, delivered by Renfrewshire Council in partnership with development partner hub West Scotland, is a flexible contemporary space providing a range of facilities including a library, theatre space, marriage suite, café and meeting rooms. The town hall also offers a range of council services alongside community partners Police Scotland and Macmillan Cancer Support under one roof.
Eight additional category winners were selected from shortlisted entries from across Scotland. Other winners included Borders Railway, which took the Infrastructure award, Lews Castle, Stornoway, which received the Building Conservation award and The Helix & The Kelpies which received the Tourism and Leisure accolade.
All category winners will now automatically be entered in to the UK RICS Awards Grand Final, to be held at The Park Lane, London in October 2016, where they will compete against projects from across the rest of the UK.
“I would like to congratulate all category winners and our Project of Year, which is a fine example of how building projects can provide real benefit for the local and wider community.”
The full list of winners:
RICS Project of the Year, Scotland
Winner – Johnstone Town Hall, Renfrewshire
Building Conservation
Winner – Lews Castle, Stornoway
Highly Commended – The Surgeons’ Hall Museums, Edinburgh
Community Benefit
Winner – Johnstone Town Hall, Renfrewshire
Highly Commended – Ronald McDonald House, Glasgow
Design through Innovation
Winner – The City of Glasgow College – Riverside Campus, Glasgow
Highly Commended – Dalmunach Distillery, Moray
Infrastructure
Winner – Borders Railway
Regeneration
Winner – Pennywell (Urban Union), Edinburgh
Highly Commended – Panmure Street, Glasgow
Commercial
Winner – Aker Solutions HQ Aberdeen International Business Park, Aberdeen
Residential
Winner – West Burn Lane, St Andrews
Highly Commended – New Build Mainstream & Supported Accommodation & Training Facilities for Veterans, Glasgow
Tourism & Leisure
Winner – The Helix & The Kelpies, Grangemouth
Centre for Scottish War Blinded in Paisley
15 Apr – Construction work on a new Centre for Scottish War Blinded in Paisley is to begin next month. The centre is the second to be designed by architects at Page\Park following on from the award winning centre at Linburn, West Lothian, completed in 2012.
University of St Andrews Green Energy Centre
14 Apr – Scottish energy minister Fergus Ewing has commended the University of St Andrews’ £25m green energy centre currently under construction at Guardbridge.
The biomass facility, using wood from sustainable local sources, is being built on the site of the former paper mill at Guardbridge and will pump hot water from the plant four miles underground to heat laboratories and student residences in St Andrews.
Contractual Liability for Closed Edinburgh Schools
13 + 12 Apr – Galliford Try has confirmed that it inherited “contractual responsibility” for four of the 17 schools closed in Edinburgh over structural safety fears when it acquired Miller Construction.
The City of Edinburgh Council ordered the closure of the schools last Friday after the private consortium behind the construction and maintenance of the schools, the Edinburgh Schools Partnership (ESP), admitted that it cannot guarantee the safety the buildings.
Edinburgh School Buildings
Perth & Kinross Council School Building News
14 Apr – Perth & Kinross Council has filed separate planning applications for the complete rebuild of Tulloch and Kinross primaries as part of a £23m modernisation drive.
Harris Academy Building
13 Apr – Holmes Miller Architects have reached practical completion at the £32m Harris Academy building in Dundee.
17 Edinburgh School Buildings Closed
12 Apr – Malcolm Fraser Architects discusses procurement of Scottish schools on the BBC this morning, cleverly avoiding discussion of wall ties and construction to focus on the quality having been lost and the procurement process having enriched bakers and lawyers.
Leading architects have detailed their long-standing concerns over public-private partnerships (PPP) contracts following the closure of schools in Edinburgh over safety fears.
Hearts Grandstand Public Consultation
11 Apr – Hearts football club have published the first artist’s impression of a planned main grandstand at Tynecastle stadium which would add 3,000 seats, upping maximum capacity to 20,000.
Tim Gray GIA President
7 Apr – New Holmes Miller director Tim Gray is now GIA President for the next two years. Tim was joined by his colleague Isabel Garriga, who will be Vice-President during his tenure and is the GIA convenor for the RIAS’s Festival of Architecture 2016.
Scottish Regeneration Company Appoints New Managing Director
7 Apr – Susan Hallsworth has been appointed as Managing Director for the growing specialist regeneration company Urban Union.
Taking up the post this month, she brings over 15 years’ experience in the industry, specifically for companies who specialise in regeneration and public and private housing developments.
Full details on the Glasgow Architecture news page.
The Drum Scottish Design Awards 2016
6 Apr – The Scottish Design Awards have been awarding the best architecture in Scotland for well over a decade, please see this year’s nominations.
Homes for Scotland Awards Shortlist
Homes for Scotland Awards shortlist news
Oriam, Scotland’s Sports Performance Centre
6 Apr – Oriam nominated for Scottish Design Award
image from architects
Oriam, Heriot-Watt Edinburgh Campus, designed by Reiach and Hall Architects.
Palace of Holyroodhouse Renewal
Tourist areas at Windsor Castle and the Palace of Holyroodhouse are to undergo a £37m revamp, the Royal Collection has announced, reports The Guardian.
£10m allocated to renew Holyroodhouse: The outside space at Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh will be redeveloped, a new family room will be created inside the palace, the storytelling of the state apartments will be improved and the Abbey Strand buildings will be restored to house a learning centre.
Palace of Holyroodhouse Renewal
The renewal architects for the the Palace of Holyroodhouse will be Burd Haward Architects, based in London.
VIBES Awards
The Vision In Business for the Environment of Scotland (VIBES) Awards promotes sustainability and resource efficiency in business – what is good for the environment is good for business.
The awards are open for all Scottish businesses and applications open on 21st April.
http://www.vibes.org.uk/
SAQP Awards
The Scottish Government announce that the SAQP has been enhanced and streamlined, together with the introduction of two new exciting Awards, celebrating the Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design 2016. Alex Neil MSP Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, Communities and Pensioners’ Rights has launched the Scottish Awards for Quality in Planning (SAQP) 2016.
They are for Personal Achievement in Planning and a People’s Choice Award.
Nominations for the awards close on 20th May 2016.
Scottish Awards for Quality in Planning
Building Scotland’s Future Hustings
Free event on 19th April 5.30pm – 8.30pm at The Wolfson Hall, Surgeon’s Hall.
A Scottish Parliament hustings for built environment professionals (by BEFS, ICE, RIAS, RICS and RTPI).
Holmes Miller Architects News
Tim Gray and Mark Ellson have been promoted to the role of director at Holmes Miller. They have shown outstanding design talent, enthusiasm and noteworthy experience in delivering successful projects for this Scottish architectural practice.
Kengo Kuma in Dundee
Japanese architect Kengo Kuma has welcomed the “beautiful” progress on the V&A Museum of Design Dundee as he made his first visit to the construction site since work began.
Marking a year from the start of work on the £80.1 million project, Kuma led a walk-through of the building which now has its full footprint in place.
Examining work on the museum’s dramatic curved inner walls, the architect said: “This project is probably my most important because the V&A museum is one of the most important museums in the world.”
Mr Kuma declared that “great progress” was being made with the building, which is due for completion by the end of next year ahead of a planned public opening in June 2018.
The architect also hailed the wider £1 billion transformation of Dundee’s waterfront, saying that the completed project’s relationship with the River Tay will be equally as impressive as its relationship with the landscape.
Kengo Kuma said: “We are delighted that our vision for the V&A Dundee building, which was originally inspired by the beautiful River Tay setting, is now starting to take physical shape. Great progress is being made with the construction and already you can see the connection between the waterfront and the city is so much stronger. I am very proud to be part of this exciting development for the city of Dundee and Scotland and to be creating a museum that will inspire people to visit from the UK and beyond.”
ISA News
2016 has been a busy year for ISA so far. They’ve changed their name, launched a new website and now are moving to bigger and better premises.
From Monday 11th April, the new address will be 4-5 Blenheim Place, Edinburgh, just around the corner from the Edinburgh Playhouse.
ISA, 4-5 Blenheim Place, Edinburgh EH7 5JH
Phone +44 0131 229 6444
Telephone, web and email addresses remain the same.
Glasgow City College Building
1 Apr – new photos of the Glasgow City College Riverside Campus building designed by Edinburgh’s Reiach and Hall Architects and Michael Laird Architects.
Zaha Hadid, 1950-2016
photo from Maggie’s Centres
1 Apr + 31 Mar – Zaha Hadid Architects have confirmed that architect Zaha Hadid, DBE died suddenly in Miami: she had contracted bronchitis earlier this week and suffered a sudden heart attack while being treated in hospital.
ZHA’s major work in the Scotland was Glasgow’s Riverside Museum.
She was also responsible for the Maggie’s Fife building at Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy.
University of Edinburgh Energy Centre Building
30 Mar – An £11m Combined Heat and Power centre to enable a University of Edinburgh campus to produce its own low-carbon energy.
The new Combined Heat and Power (CHP) system, to be installed at the University’s Easter Bush campus, will provide electricity for the Roslin Institute and the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies.
Kirkcaldy Premier Inn
30 Mar – Lawrence McPherson Architects have submitted plans to build a 60 bedroom Premier Inn hotel within the John Smith business park, Kirkcaldy.
Union Canal Apartments
29 Mar – Plans submitted by Oberlanders Architects to erect 11 flats on the site of a former industrial unit at Horne Terrace, on behalf of AMA. The building will back onto the Union Canal.
Woolmanhill Hospital Aberdeen
Plans have been revealed to transform one of Aberdeen’s most historic buildings into a 50-bedroom boutique hotel. Developers CAF Properties want to transform the 18th century Woolmanhill Hospital into a hotel and residential complex including 27 serviced apartments, 32 residential apartments and 10 affordable flats. The Grade A-listed Simpson Pavilion on Skene Street would be turned into a hotel, while the Stephen and Victoria buildings could be converted into serviced apartments.
Lutton Place Edinburgh
New student accommodation
Pop-up Cities Expo June 2016
Design and build competition for Edinburgh’s pop up pavilion to sit amongst others from major cities around Europe this summer.
The City of Edinburgh Council (CEC) is inviting entries from Edinburgh Architectural Association (EAA) members for the design and construction of a 5m x 5m plan size ‘pop up’ type pavilion which will sit on the plaza beside the national gallery.
For the chosen design this is a very high profile opportunity with an international dimension.
The brief in summary:
The total budget for the chosen design and build is a maximum £30,000.
The designs should reflect Edinburgh and its future potential.
CEC will provide the display installation inside, but are looking to collaborate with the successful designer(s) on the details.
Submissions should be A3, and anonymous on the face side to aid judging but with entrants identified on the rear.
The closing date was 31st March 2016 (registration was due by 16th March).
Edinburgh School Building Defects News
30 Mar – Safety inspections will be carried out at schools built across Scotland by Miller Construction following the collapse of a wall at an Edinburgh primary. This feature on the BBC Scotland news last night.
St Kilda Visitor Centre Building News
30 Mar – Dualchas Architects with Reuilf Ramstad Architects of Norway collaborate on the design of a St Kilda visitor centre on the Isle of Harris in the Western Isles. A master plan concept is expected to be in place by the end of May.
Blackdog Masterplan
29 + 25 Mar – Ashfield Land and Kirkwood Homes have lodged plans to build a £150m ‘town centre’ for the tiny hamlet of Blackdog, two miles north of Aberdeen’s city limits.
Serving as a gateway development for the ‘Energetica corridor’ project, a 30 mile long strip of development stretching out to Peterhead, the development will include 600 homes, offices, industrial units, supermarket, hotel and cinema.
A retail and leisure hub, with supporting business and industrial use, has been designed by Threesixty Architecture for Ashfield Land to the north whilst a residential section to the south has been designed by Optimised Environments (OPEN) and William Lippe Architects for Kirkwood Homes.
East Lothian Community Hospital
image from architect
26 Mar – Planning permission granted for the building of a new community hospital at Roodlands, Haddington. It is being developed by East Lothian Health and Social Care Partnership and NHS Lothian:
East Lothian Community Hospital Building
RIAS Awards / RIBA Awards for Scotland
24 Mar – The RIAS announce a 23-strong shortlist for its 2016 awards. The judging panel chaired by Willie Watt included Denise Bennetts, Alan Jones, Andy Leitch and Stuart McKill:
RIAS Awards / RIBA Awards for Scotland Shortlist
Royal High School Hotel Planning Permission Appeal
24 + 22 Mar – Duddingston House Properties have appealed against a council decision to reject the plan to transform the former Royal High School in Edinburgh into a £75 m hotel. DHP has lodged a formal planning permission appeal with the Scottish Government’s planning and environmental appeals division just before an official deadline.
Lanarkshire Beatson
23 Mar – Located at Monklands Hospital in Airdrie, the new Lanarkshire Beatson treatment centre designed by Keppie architects is now open.
Cardross Seminary Funding News
23 Mar – St Peter’s Seminary in Cardross transformation proposal for an arts venue and heritage destination awarded £4.2m of funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) and Creative Scotland:
St Peter’s Seminary Funding
Scottish Civic Trust My Place Awards Winners
22 Mar – A new community facility and visitor centre, designed by Shauna Cameron Architect, on the Isle of Luing, has won the Scottish Civic Trust My Place Awards 2016:
Scottish Civic Trust My Place Awards Winners
EAA Awards 2016 Shortlist
22 Mar – The Edinburgh Architectural Association is pleased to announce that the following projects have been short listed for the 2016 EAA Awards.
In total 34 submissions were received. All projects are designed by registered architects and built within the chapter area, with exception to the Ambassador Award which is built out with the chapter.
Building of the Year:
– Murphy House, Hart Street – Richard Murphy Architects
– Solid House – Beecher Architect
– Westfield Avenue Phase Two – 7N Architects
Regeneration and Conservation:
– Rosyth Parish Church – City Architecture Office
– Saltcoats Steading – Aitken Turnbull Architects
– Woodhall House – Lorn Macneal Architects
Small Projects:
– “It’s Bigger on the Inside” – David Blaikie Architects
– Newbattle Gardens – Craig Amy Architect
– Sydserf – Sutherland & Co Architects
– The Causeway – Konishi Gaffney Architects
Ambassador Award:
– Forsinard Lookout Tower – Icosis Architects
– Riverside Campus, City of Glasgow College – Michael Laird Architects / Reiach and Hall Architects
– The Kirroughtree Visitor Centre – J M Architects
– York Art Gallery – Ushida Findlay Simpson Brown
Wood Award:
– 9 Succoth Park – Goodburn Baillie (Architecture) Ltd
– Craigdon Mountain Sports Retail Facility – Oberlanders Architects LLP
– Edinburgh Academy Hockey Pavilion – Richard Murphy Architects
EAA Awards, Edinburgh
Semple Street Development Latest Addition To Edinburgh’s Exchange Financial District
image from developer
22 Mar – Work has started on a £24m development in Edinburgh’s vibrant Exchange district designed Michael Laird Architects which will provide 35,000 sqft of office space and 11,000 sqft of ground floor retail units:
Semple Street Development
Queens Quay Masterplan
22 Mar – The Queens Quay in Clydebank masterplan will be presented to West Dunbartonshire Council on Wednesday.
Detailed proposals have been put forward to planners outlining the vision for transforming the former John Brown’s shipyard, which has lain derelict for years.
Perth Theatre Restoration News
22 Mar – The restoration and redevelopment of Perth Theatre has started on site.
Project contractors Robertson Construction Tayside will be on site to carry out enabling works, which will include stripping out existing buildings and preparing to demolish sections to make way for the new extension. Completion is due in 2017.
RIAS Council Elections Nominations
There are four vacant places for nationally elected Incorporation Representatives on RIAS Council for the coming session. Members of the RIAS are invited to nominate Fellows and Members of the Incorporation to fill these vacancies.
The President, Willie Watt, hopes that members from all sections of the profession and of all ages will consider standing for election. However, should there be insufficient candidates to fill the vacancies the RIAS may make its own nominations.
Nomination papers must be returned to the RIAS by 5.00pm, Thursday 7th April 2016 accompanied by the candidate’s election statement of no more than 200 words. Nominations received after 5pm on 7th April will be invalid. Voting papers will be issued by email on Friday 15th April to be returned (by e-mail, fax or post) by 5.00pm on Friday 29th April 2016. The results will be announced at the Incorporation’s AGM in Edinburgh on Friday 13th May.
N.O.W.H.E.R.E.
19 Mar – N.O.W.H.E.R.E. presents a collection of contemporary artist video work from Northern Ireland. The exhibition is a continuation of the gallery exchange with Catalyst Arts, an established artist run art project based in Belfast. Two of the IR11 gallery artists showed their work in Belfast in the Autumn 2015 and IR 11 will in response install the work of 4 video artists in Ocean Terminal.
Pyramid Viewpoint
19 Mar – Located on a peninsula overlooking the UK’s largest stretch of inland water, Loch Lomond: the viewpoint by BTE Architecture takes the shape of a triangular platform and is positioned at the end of a long curved path stretching form the car park to the highest point of the peninsula.
Pyramid Viewpoint at Loch Lomond
Oriam Sports Hub Hotel
18 + 16 Mar – StudioAnyo (Hackney, London) have submitted plans for a 160-bed Courtyard by Marriott hotel at the National Performance Centre for Sport in west Edinburgh.
Hinterland Launches
18 Mar – Amidst the stunning, brutal, Modern architecture of St Peter’s Seminary, audiences will discover aspects of the degraded building highlighted and animated through light installations, projection and sound elements. Comments and reports welcome this weekend.
City Region Deal + Funding for Buildings in Dundee & Helensburgh
17 Mar – Chancellor George Osborne has announced that a City Region Deal for Edinburgh and South East Scotland is being negotiated and pledged £10 m towards two building projects in Scotland.
Delivering his Budget to the House of Commons yesterday, the Chancellor said that fines levied from banks as a result of misconduct are to be evenly split to create a new leisure facility in Helensburgh and contribute to the fundraising campaign for the V&A Museum being built in Dundee.
The funding for the V&A project, which comes on top of a £12.5m contribution from the Heritage Lottery Fund, will make a major contribution towards the iconic museum reach its overall funding target.
Welcoming today’s funding announcement, Scotland Office Minister Andrew Dunlop said the money would help ensure the project would play its full part in the regeneration of Dundee.
He said: “This is great news for the V&A and for the city as a whole.
“I am delighted the Chancellor has been able to find this money for Dundee in his Budget. It shows the UK Government is listening to Scotland and doing what we can to support important projects like the regeneration of the city’s waterfront.
“The V&A is a vital project, not just culturally, but also in terms of the part it can play in attracting jobs and investment into Dundee. An iconic enterprise like this will help put the city on the map, bringing in visitors and showing the world what Dundee has to offer.”
The facility in Helensburgh will be available for use by the local community and by members of staff at the nearby HMNB Clyde base at Faslane.
Based on the Helensburgh Pier Head – an integral part of the town’s waterfront – the new facility will benefit local residents in the town and surrounding areas who rely heavily on the naval base for their jobs, businesses and livelihoods.
Scottish New Homes Funding
17 Mar – The Scottish Government has unveiled a £50 m investment in charitable bonds over the next two years to provide support for almost 1,000 new homes.
Kingdom Housing Association in Fife, Eildon Housing Association in the Borders as well as Orkney Housing Association and Ayrshire Housing Association will benefit from this year’s £25m bonds. A further £25 million is earmarked for 2016-17.
Falkirk Urban Quarter News
17 Mar – Falkirk Council has unveiled plans to create a new, environmentally friendly urban quarter under its multi-million pound Tax Incremental Finance (TIF) initiative.
(Re)Imagining Glasgow
Premiere screening on Sunday 20 Mar, 3:15pm.
For Scotland’s Festival of Architecture 2016, the Glasgow Institute of Architects have commissioned filmmaker Chris Leslie to create a new short film. (Re)Imagining Glasgow looks at Glasgow’s regeneration over the past forty years and the pledges made by the Corporation of the City of Glasgow: more details on the Glasgow Architecture website’s events page.
Easter Road Stadium
16 Mar – new photos of the Hibs ground: Easter Road Stadium
Park Quadrant Housing
14 Mar – Expresso Property has submitted revised plans for Park Quadrant, Glasgow , following a series of public consultations held around their original proposals.
Scottish Cities Alliance at MIPIM
11 Mar – Scottish Cities Alliance is to drum up interest in Scotland’s seven cities at MIPIM by showcasing a ‘Pitch Book’ of commercial property opportunities to investors.
Prospect North Exhibition
11 Mar – An ‘immersive exhibition’ created by Lateral North, Dualchas Architects and Soluis is to headline Scotland’s contribution to this year’s Venice Architecture Biennale in Italy.
Prospect North will explore the relationship between the places, culture, people and economy of Scotland with its northern neighbours through the display of interactive maps, narratives, portraits and images from the region.
Graham Hogg and Tom Smith of Lateral North said:”we are not only going to show the visitors to this year’s Scottish pavilion what Scotland is about, but we are going to take them to Scotland through immersive, dynamic and innovative technologies – technologies which are going to be at the forefront of architectural practice over the coming years.”
Dualchas director, Alasdair Stephen added: “Dualchas and Lateral North believe that Scottish architecture and art is comparable with our contemporaries in Europe. We want to take the opportunity of the Venice Biennale to demonstrate this to the wider world.”
Prospect North will be on show from 26 May to 25 June at Ludoteca Santa Maria Ausiliatrice in Venice before commencing a nationwide tour of Scotland.
Collective Architecture News
10 Mar – Collective Architecture has turned their attention southwards for their latest project, a major mixed use development in North Cheam, London, on behalf of the Home Group.
East Lothian Community Hospital
10 Mar – East Lothian Council has granted planning consent for a purpose-built community hospital in Haddington.
QMU Innovation Park News
4 Mar – Proposal unveiled for an £80 m Innovation Park next to the Musselburgh campus of Queen Margaret University (QMU).
A detailed business plan for the project is being drawn up by knowledge economy consultancy CAM-SCI as part of the University’s development strategy.
The University’s decision to retain the consultancy was made after a Proposal of Application Notice (PAN) consultation in September 2015 saw support for the concept gather pace.
As East Lothian Council moves towards finalising the East Lothian Development Plan, QMU is progressing its vision for local and regional social and economic development around its campus, aiming to protect this land for the development of specialist facilities to support the food and drink sector.
Judy Murray Tennis Centre
11 Mar – Developers behind a multi-million pound tennis and golf centre near Dunblane are appealing against a council decision to refuse it planning permission.
Backed by Judy Murray and former Ryder Cup golf captain Colin Montgomerie, the £37.5 million project was to be located at Park of Keir, between Murray’s home town of Dunblane and Bridge of Allan on the outskirts of Stirling University.
The plans, which include a four-star hotel, visitor centre, museum, parkland and luxury housing, were rejected by Stirling Council last year amid fears the development could have a “significant detrimental impact” on a “sensitive landscape”. There was also a worry that the homes could “exacerbate affordability in the local area”.
However it has now emerged an appeal has been submitted to the Scottish Government by lawyers and consultants acting for Park of Keir Partnership.
A Scottish Government reporter will now carry out an inspection of the site.
Portobello High School Building News
11 Mar – The opening of the new Portobello High School may be delayed by around 4 months, from August 2016 to January 2017. The reason provided is an issue with securing a drainage connection with Scottish Water. However there is also a claim that the opening will go ahead as planned.
Construction of the school designed by jmarchitects will replace the ageing 1960s high-rise building on Duddingston Road. It was delayed for six years because of the disagreement over whether it should be built in Portobello Park. Start on site was October 2014 and the long white-rendered building will cater for around 1400 pupils. Contractors are Balfour Beatty.
National Galleries of Scotland Granton Building
11 Mar – The National Galleries of Scotland (NGS) is pursuing plans for a multi-million pound complex on Edinburgh’s waterfront after being donated a parcel of land by the Scottish Government.
NGS intend to create a new National Collections Facility, a world-class purpose-built archive, conservation and research centre close to the site of the former Granton gasworks.
The National Galleries of Scotland’s collections of almost 100,000 works are stored in various sites, including a facility at the National Gallery of Modern Art and a small centre in Granton, close to where the National Museum of Scotland opened a new £12m facility last year.
The unused site – close to the listed former Granton gas tower and Edinburgh College’s campus – earmarked for the new development includes the remains of Madelvic, the oldest purpose-built car factory in the UK, which has been previously been earmarked for demolition, but could now be saved. Previously Malcolm Fraser Architects had worked on redeveloping that site.
A planning application is likely to be submitted by mid-2017, with construction expected to start before 2020.
The centre would be the next major project for the organisation following the planned completion of work to overhaul and extend the Scottish National Gallery in 2018.
Broughty Ferry Flats
8 Mar – Arktx have submitted plans drawn up on behalf of Broomvale to erect six new build flats on vacant ground off Queen Street within the Forthill Conservation Area of Broughty Ferry.
Buccleuch Place & Meadow Lane Student Residences
9 Mar – The £22m Buccleuch Place & Meadow Lane student accommodation project has started on site at University of Edinburgh. It involves the conversion and refurbishment of two grade B-listed tenement blocks and the construction of four new build accommodation blocks in the city’s Southside conservation area. Due to complete in by summer 2017, Graham Construction began preparatory work on the site in December.
BRE Scotland Office Design Competition
8 Mar – Clyde Gateway and BRE are launching a design competition, through a competitive PQQ and ITT process, to procure a contractor led design team to build the new flagship office for BRE Scotland. See the Glasgow Architecture site news page for more details.
Bathgate HQ Building
7 Mar – Aldi is to build a 21,500sq/ft extension to its Bathgate headquarters to oversee ongoing expansion of the budget supermarket chain which intends to open eight new stores through 2016.
Meadowbank Sports Centre
4 Mar – Plans to deliver a new Meadowbank Sports Centre could take a step forward next week as councillors discuss a report on how the new facility should be funded, reports Construction News Scotland.
The ‘Funding Package Proposal for a new Meadowbank’ report outlines the estimated investment required to transform the ageing sports venue which twice hosted the Commonwealth Games.
The estimated total project cost has now reduced to £41.1 million and the report recommends that the City of Edinburgh Council develops the detailed design which would allow the project to be tendered. This would then provide greater clarity on the funding gap required from the council capital investment programme – currently estimated at £5.98m.
The remainder of the funding would be achieved by generating capital receipts from the surplus land at Meadowbank, prudential borrowing and revenue savings from closing the facilities during the construction period. In addition, the council would make an application to sportscotland for funding.
Another benefit outlined in the repor