Building Briefs – February 3rd

A planned £25 million state of the art sports centre in Perth has been given the backing of the local MSP.

Liz Smith, Scottish Conservative MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife and Tory spokeswoman for sport, feels the proposed complex — which should provide for around 20 sports — represents a great opportunity to develop a “first-class” facility for the whole of Perth and Kinross and beyond.

Ms Smith met Live Active bosses to discuss the ambitious plans for the PH2O project, which, if appropriate funding is found, will be built on the existing shell of Perth Leisure Pool, thus becoming one of the biggest sports developments to take place in Perth and Kinross.

PH2O will have swimming pools, an ice rink, gym, health suite and an external adventure play zone, in what has been described as a “21st-Century flagship” for the city.

Ms Smith said: “I fully support the proposed PH2O project. Following the success of Team Scotland this year at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and the UK team at the Olympic Games in London in 2012, focus has shifted to how we develop the facilities to increase access to sports and training facilities for our future sporting talent.

“In the same sense as Bell’s sports centre putting Perth on the map for having great local sporting facilities, I believe the PH2O project has the potential to do the same.”

Perth and Kinross Council approves £62m housing investment programme

Perth and Kinross Council has approved plans to invest around £2 million to buy back former council houses on the open market to help those in greatest need.

The venture, which was agreed by councillors on the housing and health committee last week, will bring the level of funding devoted to buying back ex-council stock to £7m over the next five years.

The committee also approved a planned investment programme in council housing stock of £62m over the next five years which will focus on central heating renewal (£8.5m), external fabric works (£5.8m), energy efficiency works (£4.6m), double glazing (£4.6m), environmental improvements (£1.9m), multi-storey flats (£1.8m), installation of controlled door entry systems (£1.1m), kitchens and bathrooms (£0.9m) and fire precaution measures (£0.7m).

The Capital Investment Plan also proposes further investment in new house building with the addition of 25 houses per annum across Perth and Kinross from 2015/16 onwards.

Kitchen company bolstered by £3.5m of funding

A window and kitchen manufacturer is opening up several new outlets across Scotland after agreeing £3.5m of funding from Business Growth Fund.

Stevenswood currently sells through trade counters in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Kilmarnock and Dundee as well as at its headquarters in Livingston.

Now it plans to launch new counters in Falkirk, Stirling and Dunfermline along with moving to larger premises in Glasgow which will incorporate a bigger showroom area for its range of kitchens. The company had moved into a larger factory in the summer of last year which has already seen it increase weekly shift patterns and add around 30 new staff. At least 10 more jobs are expected to be created this year.

Royal High School revamp plans move forward

Members of the public will this week for the first time have the opportunity to have their say on plans to transform one of Edinburgh’s most distinctive landmarks into a five star hotel.

On Friday and Saturday the old Royal High School on Edinburgh’s Calton Hill will open its doors to invite the public to view and comment on the plans.

In advance of the public consultation, the developers - Duddingston House Properties (DHP) and the Urbanist Group - have released architect Gareth Hoskins’ initial impressions of what the former school’s assembly hall might look like if the development is granted planning permission and turned into a reception area for the proposed hotel.

Work under way to build £3.2m business park in Fife

A £3.2 million business park aimed at attracting scores of jobs to Fife is finally under construction.

Work began on the Low Carbon Investment Park on the outskirts of Buckhaven last week, with machinery moving on to the site to prepare the ground.

The park is part of a wider development for the area, which includes construction of a new primary school and around 1,500 new homes.

The aim is to provide more space to allow Fife Energy Park at Methil to expand.

Around 15 hectares of land will be provided to businesses which do not need direct access to the quayside but would benefit from being located less than a mile from the Energy Park.

It will be occupied primarily by businesses within the renewables supply chain.

The Fife Council project, which attracted £861,000 of European funding to help get it off the ground, has been held up for several years due to a wrangle over land ownership.

Housing hero opens new homes in Tarbert

Argyll Community Housing Association (ACHA) has just completed its first new build homes in Oakfield, Tarbert.

The eight new 1 and 2 bedroom homes were officially opened by retired sheltered housing warden and housing volunteer Sandra MacKenzie.

For 30 years Sandra worked as a sheltered housing warden and then, following retirement, served as a housing association board member.

The properties were built in just over a year by Mid Argyll based construction firm M&K MacLeod to a value of just over £1 million. Financial contributions to the building work came from the Scottish Government, ACHA and Argyll and Bute Council.

House prices continue to rise

House prices continued to rise in the third quarter of 2014-15, according to official statistics published today by Registers of Scotland (RoS).

The average house price in Scotland in the third quarter was £165,197, up 3.4 per cent on the same period in 2013. This is the highest figure for this quarter since RoS began compiling quarterly house price statistics in 2003.

From October to December last year, the total value of sales across Scotland was also up, with an increase of 3.1 per cent compared to the previous year to just under £4.2 billion. Moray showed the highest percentage rise, with the value of sales increasing by 21.7 per cent compared to the previous year.

South Ayrshire leisure centre plans gain momentum

Additional funding has been made available for a proposed new leisure and community facility in Girvan, South Ayrshire.

A total of £100,000 has been awarded by Hadyard Hill Community Benefit Fund to South Carrick Community Leisure. The funding follows on from grants awarded to the development in 2014 by South Ayrshire Council, Carrick Futures and the Regeneration Capital Grant Fund.

In a statement, South Ayrshire Council said it brings the total financial commitments to more than £4.6m, on an overall project cost of £5m.

The facility, which is scheduled to open in late 2016, will comprise of a 25-metre swimming pool, a two-storey children’s soft play area, fitness gym, flexible multi-purpose studios, a viewing area and café.

Work to continue on Bishopbriggs relief road

Building work is to commence on the fourth phase of the Bishopbriggs Relief Road project.

Design work has been completed on the scheme and allows for enabling works to start on the latest section this spring, with bridge and carriageway construction following in the autumn.

This phase of works will see the current Westerhill Road replaced and tie in to the third phase of the scheme, at the roundabout on Wester Cleddens Road. A new bridge will be built over the railway line, while a new roundabout will also be delivered.

A scheduled completion date for this phase of work, which will cost round £6.5 million, has been given for winter 2017. It is part of a wider 10-year capital project by East Dunbartonshire Council.

AJ Engineering secures Forsinard Flows Reserve work

AJ Engineering has secured a contract to carry out work at the Forsinand Flows Reserve in Caithness.

The firm successfully bid to work as a sub-contractor to work on the project for Thurso-based O’Brien Construction Ltd.

The project will see AJ Engineering responsible for fabricating and installing steelwork for a new RSPB Bird Hide in the Forsinand Flows Reserve, as part of The Peatland Partnership’s ‘Flow to the Future’ initiative. The scheme aims to develop an education centre, as well as construct a new observatory near to the reserve.