Building Briefs – January 8th

• University of Dundee campus refurbishment serves up social bite for students

A £500,000 refurbishment of the University’s School of Nursing and Health Sciences campus in Kirkcaldy has been unveiled, incorporating a new dining room and student hub.

Approximately 300 students study at the Fife campus, which became affiliated to the University of Dundee in 1996.

• Edinburgh Holiday Inn set for revamp

Holiday Inn’s Edinburgh City West Hotel is set to undergo a multi-million-pound refurbishment in 2020 following the sale to L+R Hotels, transforming it into a state-of-the-art Holiday Inn Express.

• West Lothian Council reveals new £4m homelessness plan

West Lothian Council has announced a new £4 million plan to help tackle the increasing problem of homelessness amongst young people.

The council will develop a new 12-person supported housing unit in Deans, Livingston, to replace the existing homelessness facilities in Newlands House, Bathgate.

The new temporary accommodation centre will include 12 self-contained flats.

• Owner of abandoned Perth hotel drawing up plans for derelict site

The owner of a derelict hotel in Perth which collapsed in on itself is working on plans to redevelop the site after the latest planning proposal fell through.

The White Horse Inn on North William Street has been abandoned since 2013 when a fire ripped through the building, creating an eyesore that has blighted the area.

Plans have been submitted to Perth and Kinross Council by Aberkell Developments to demolish the building and erect 12 flats on the site.

• Edinburgh property market ends year with decade-high transaction rate

Edinburgh’s housing market closed the decade with activity between buyers and sellers at its highest level – with the rate of transactions soaring, Warners Solicitors and Estate Agents has revealed.

Warners has released its latest market report which show the final months of 2019 as having the highest number of sales for the time of year since before the start of the 2008 recession.

In the three months to November, Warners reached just shy of 300 successful sales, marking an annual increase of 43.7%.

The number of properties launching onto the market has also been climbing, reaching 20% higher than the same period from 2018 and more than 45%. higher than the number of listings during that period in 2017.

Over the last three months, Warners alone added 264 further homes for sale in Edinburgh and the Lothians.

• Work on redevelopment of Cornton Vale scheduled to begin next month

Work as part of the redevelopment of Cornton Vale women’s prison could begin next month.

Documents in the planning process for the jail show that the Scottish Prison Service and contractor Morrison Construction aim to start in February.

The replacement institution between Cornton and Bridge and Allan will accommodate 80 prisoners with “acute” needs, the Stirling Observer reports.

A 20-place assessment centre will also be used to determine where women coming into custody will be kept within the prison estate.

Documents accompanying the MSC application state: “The planning permission in principle was supported by a significant body of supporting documents including site layout, cross sections and elevation plans for the proposed buildings.”