Building Briefs – August 13th

An initiative which offers rent-free accommodation to entice teachers to move to Moray has received its first beneficiary.

Gillian Elliot has been handed the keys to the two-bedroom flat in Elgin where she will be able to live rent-free for the next six months.

It follows a unique partnership agreement between Moray Council and Springfield Properties in the hope of easing the council’s teacher shortage.

Springfield has placed ten of its new properties at the council’s disposal in what is believed to be the first arrangement of its kind in Scotland.

At one point last year, Moray had more than 70 teaching vacancies in its 53 schools, although the situation has since eased somewhat.

Springfield chairman Sandy Adam stepped in with the offer of six months’ free accommodation as an incentive after councillors were warned that there was a danger of pupils being sent home because of a lack of teacher cover.

Scottish Water announces Edinburgh sewer network expansion

Scottish Water has announced work to increase the size of a sewer network in Edinburgh will take place in 2017.

Earlier this year, Scottish Water carried out site investigation works to assess ground conditions in Haymarket Terrace.

This was done in advance of the project to increase the size of the local sewer network.

The investigation work found large quantities of particularly hard rock which will need to be removed.

The investigation also confirmed that, before work on the sewer can take place, it will be necessary to divert the gas main.

The decision taken to carry out the work in 2017 followed a consultation with the council and stakeholders in the area.

Final stage of £6m Dumfries road upgrade

A further £1 million is being invested in the Dumfries by-pass in the final stage of a £6 million maintenance programme.

Scotland TranServ, on behalf of Transport Scotland, will carry out this final stage in three phases, upgrading the road surface to ensure the longevity of this route for years to come and supporting vital links to the ferry ports at Cairnryan.

The work will take place under a closure of the A75 from the A76 Glasgow Road roundabout to the A701 Edinburgh Road roundabout.

Housing demand runs ahead of supply in Scotland

While house prices continue to move higher, the number of newly agreed sales in Scotland dropped slightly during July, according to the latest RICS UK Residential Market Survey.

Although 35 per cent more chartered surveyors saw prices rise in July, supply to the market was broadly unchanged with just 1 per cent more surveyors reporting a rise in new instructions throughout Scotland.

Additionally, the shortage of housing inventory worsened further during July, with the average number of properties for sale per surveyor slipping to a record low across the UK. Consequently, all areas of the UK are projected to see sizeable house price gains over the next twelve months, with confidence most elevated in East Anglia and Northern Ireland.

‘Vital’ homes for low incomes families opened in Ullapool

New properties built to help people on low incomes own their first home have been officially opened in Ullapool by social justice secretary Alex Neil.

The four one and two-bedroom flats have been made available to local house hunters through the Low-cost Initiative for First Time Buyers (LIFT) scheme, with applicants normally expected to pay between 60 and 80 per cent of the asking price, and the remaining share paid by the Scottish Government.

The flats are part of the £1.8 million development at Garve Road which includes 14 flats built over two storeys, with tenants already living in the ten rented properties, and the four shared equity flats expected to be occupied over the next few weeks.

Mr Neil also got a first glimpse of plans to transform the nearby former site of the Glenfield Hotel into a 55-property mixed tenure development. The Scottish Government provided £415,000 towards the purchase of the site.

Profits up at property firm Mactaggart

Mactaggart Heritable Holdings, the historic Scottish property company, has lifted profits as it sought to maximise returns on its investments in New York and London.

The Glasgow-registered business, owned by the family of Labour MP Fiona Mactaggart, boosted group turnover by 68 per cent to £16.8 million, accounts newly filed at Companies House show.

That came after its Swallowfield Hayes subsidiary raised £4m from property sales, and hotel revenue grew by £2.8m. Hotels owned by the company include luxury group Nadler, which has properties in London and Liverpool.

Scottish wind project raises £1.4m for construction of two community-owned turbines

A new community wind energy project has been given the green light after organisers raised over £1m to fund its development.

The Heartland Community Wind Project will see two 250KW turbines installed by Scottish renewable energy developer RM Energy in October this year.

East Renfrewshire Council launches park survey

East Renfrewshire Council is to launch a survey which will help to shape future plans at a park in the area.

Rouken Glen has been undergoing a number of significant improvements and the council has so far invested £1m in the park. The Heritage Lottery Fund has also awarded a grant of £2m through its Parks for People programme.

To date, the investment has seen the complete restoration of the historic Pavilion into a visitor and heritage centre, along with the opening of a children’s play park.

The survey can be found here.