Building Briefs – April 22nd

Housing association completes first new build homes in Helensburgh

Argyll Community Housing Association (ACHA) has completed its first new build housing in Helensburgh.

The 12 new build properties are made up of 6 one and 6 two bedroom flats.

The development’s location is at Hood Court which has been renamed Duchess Court, a name suggested by local schoolgirl Hayley Ramsay from St Joseph’s Primary School. The name reflects the nearby Duchess Woods in Helensburgh and was selected from a number of school entries.

The site was a previous home to garages that had reached the end of their useful lives. The total development cost of £1.4 million was made up of contributions from the Scottish Government, Argyll and Bute Council and ACHA.

The development was officially opened at noon yesterday by Councillor Aileen Morton of Argyll and Bute Council.

The construction work started in March 2014 and took just over one year to complete by Crudens Ltd.

Western Isles road resurfacing scheme to start

A road resurfacing programme is to begin in Comhairle nan Eilean Siar in May.

Two weeks of work will also take place in the Barra and Uist area.

The work will start in the Harris area on 25 May for approximately one to two weeks, and will transfer to Lewis for a further two to three week period.

Most areas of the Western Isles will be affected by the works.

£1.5m capital investment set for Dundee schools

More than £1.5 million of improvements to schools across Dundee could be timetabled if councillors give the tenders a pass mark.

Contracts submitted to carry out works at seven schools will be considered by the city development committee next week.

Bill Campbell depute committee convener said: “Most of this work has been won by our own Environment Department construction services division which will help to keep local tradesmen in jobs and make a positive contribution to the city’s economy.”

Glebelands and St Pius primary schools will have new modular buildings supplied, while the pupil toilets will be upgraded at Ancrum Road, Ardler, St Fergus and Craigiebarns primaries.

Among other tenders also being considered by the committee, which meets on Monday (April 27) is a £930,000 refurbishment of the changing areas and sauna suite at Lochee Leisure Centre.

Springfield Properties offers rent-free homes to ease teacher shortage

Teachers are being offered rent-free accommodation in Moray in a bid to end a long-running staffing shortage.

Moray Council has struck a deal with a housebuilder Springfield Properties to attract new blood to the area.

The Elgin-based building firm is offering six months’ free housing to teachers coming from outwith the area.

The local authority is struggling to fill posts in the area, with more than 70 vacancies in its 53 primary and secondary schools, and will have spent more than £75,000 advertising the jobs by the end of the financial year.

Springfield has put ten of its new two-bedroom properties at the council’s disposal in an arrangement which is unprecedented in Scotland.

Combined with the authority’s relocation package, this offer could mean new teachers from outside Moray living rent-free for a year.

It follows an approach to the council by Springfield Properties chairman Sandy Adam after it emerged there was a chronic problem in attracting teachers to the area.

Plans to turn historic Blairgowrie granary into hotel

Plans have been lodged to turn a historic Blairgowrie building into a hotel.

Developers Roy Sim Properties want to transform the old granary on Lower Mill Street.

The company took over the C-listed property in 1983, saving it from demolition.

Now applications for listed building and planning consent have been submitted to Perth and Kinross Council to create the Ericht Hotel and Mill Yard establishment, including a restaurant, bar and six bedrooms.

Comrie-based architects Denholm Partnership drew up the proposal.

Dundee City Council to consider house alterations consultation

A Dundee City Council consultation on proposed planning guidance for some of the most common changes people make to their homes has generated a number of responses.

In January the local authority issued draft supplementary guidance for householders considering extensions, fitting dormers or building a garage as well as a range of common domestic developments.

Interested parties including statutory bodies, private and public parties, community groups and members of the public were invited to comment on the document, and feedback came from a number of groups including Dundee Institute of Architects, Broughty Ferry Community Council, Dundee University Town & Regional Planning students, SEPA, SNH, Historic Scotland and the Scottish Government.

Advice and best practice on the design, scale and location of extensions, alterations to existing houses and development of garden ground is included in the document, which has been created to meet the changing needs and demands of residents.

As the planning authority Dundee City Council also has to consider the impact of the proposed work on the property, neighbouring buildings and the surrounding area.

The report will be considered by the city development committee on Monday April 27.

East Lothian Council to contribute to £1bn City Region Deal

East Lothian Council has agreed to contribute almost £75,000 towards a project that could bring around £1 billion into the economy of the Lothians.

The Edinburgh City Region (ECR) Deal is a joint project between East Lothian Council, Edinburgh, Fife, Midlothian, Scottish Borders and West Lothian Council. The local authorities will work together with the Scottish and UK governments to put forward a funding bid for a group of projects which will boost the economy of the area.

Projects included in the bid, across the city region, are likely to involve transport, housing, regeneration, energy, tourism and broadband – with the ambitious aim of boosting the economy by five per cent per annum over a 10 year period following the investment.

The initial business case will involve a contribution of up to £25,000 from East Lothian, then a further maximum of £50,000 to develop a detailed business case.

It is expected that the plan will draw in around £1bn in funding from the government, with an additional £3.2bn being pulled in from the private sector. The initial deal is expected to be agreed in early 2016.

A75 Cree Bridge works to start

Scotland TranServ, working on behalf of Transport Scotland, is to carry out a programme of works on the Cree Bridge on the A75.

With the road surface coming towards the end of its operational life, the Scotland TranServ team will improve the quality of the surface and waterproof the bridge deck.

This is a significant project over the River Cree that will deliver long-term, tangible benefits for drivers in this part of Dumfries and Galloway.

Work will begin on the 27 April daily for approximately 4 weeks and two way traffic signalling will be in place during this time to protect the operatives working on site and to allow vehicles to cross the bridge safely. From the 8 May works will also take place from 2000 to 0600 each night with a total closure being implemented during these times.

Work starts on new ferry linkspan at Ullapool

Four weeks of work to install a new linkspan at Ullapool ferry terminal has begun.

The harbour’s 42-year-old linkspan is to be replaced with a new two-lane structure to allow vehicles to move on and off ferries quicker.

However, the work means only foot passengers can be ferried from Ullapool to Stornoway on Lewis.

Vehicles and freight will be ferried between Uig on the Isle of Skye and Stornoway.

Philanthropic construction director leaves £25m to charities

The former director of a construction company has left the bulk of his £33 million fortune to charity.

According to The Times, the philanthropic gesture by Basil Larsen, who died in September last year aged 88, was revealed in his recently published will.

After leaving gifts totalling £8m to friends, Mr Larsen instructed that the remainder of his £33,691,282 estate (about £25m) should be handed to good causes. He appointed trusted friends to run the Basil Larsen Charitable Trust, set up by Larsen in 1999, which will distribute grants across the UK.

A spokesman for the trust said: “We will be registering the details of Mr Larsen’s generosity with the Charities Commission. It is too early to say how the money will be distributed.”

Mr Larsen, whose father was Danish, was born and brought up in Kew, London, before moving to Scotland as a young man. He ran the Scottish operation of the Bison concrete company and helped to develop its revolutionary construction patents.

He settled in Scotland with his wife Ella, who died eight years ago, and they bought a home in Auchterarder, Perthshire, near Gleneagles.

A friend said: “He never had any children and felt it was important to give something back to charities.”