Building Briefs – July 26th

Work progressing on Aberdeen council homes

The first council homes to be built in Aberdeen in a decade are taking shape with roofs now fitted on the properties.

Aberdeen City Council is developing almost 100 new council homes on the former Smithfield Primary School site.

The extensive development marks a key milestone in the local authority’s objectives to roll out thousands of affordable houses in the next two years.

The two-phase scheme is being delivered by CHAP Construction and has been designed by North-east firm Lippe Architects.

Phase one on Provost Rust Drive will provide 12 semi-detached houses and are scheduled to be completed by May 2017.

Around 30 semi-detached and 57 one and two bedroom homes will be on offer after phase two is completed.

The homes will also be part of Aberdeen City Council’s combined heat and power scheme which will recycle energy from waste to provide low cost fuel.

Glasgow Queen Street tunnel to reopen early

Glasgow Queen Street station tunnel is to reopen one day earlier than planned, ScotRail has confirmed.

Services were due to restart from Queen Street High Level station on the morning of August 8, following completion of the 20 week project. Services will now begin to be reintroduced from Sunday 7 August.

The return of trains to the station’s High Level platforms, paves the way for work to begin to transform Glasgow Queen Street station. Subject to the relevant permissions, work will begin to redevelop the entire station later this year, and is due for completion in 2019.

Water firm breaks ground on £16m extension

Highland Spring Group has broken ground on a major factory extension to house a new production line at its Blackford site in Perthshire.

A total of £16 million is being invested as part of a business commitment to double production capacity in the next 12 months as the UK’s thirst for bottled water grows.

The bottled water market is expected to reach in excess of 4.8 billion litres by 2020.

Volume of house sales up 4.9 per cent

The volume of residential property sales rose 4.9 per cent in the first quarter of 2016-17 (April-June) compared to the same period last year, according to official statistics published today by Registers of Scotland.

A total of 25,760 properties changed hands between April and June, the highest volume of sales for these months since 2008-09.

The total value of sales across Scotland increased by 2.5 per cent compared to the previous year to just over £4.2 billion. The City of Edinburgh was the largest market, with sales of over £745.7 million for the quarter, up 7.1 per cent on the previous year.

South Ayrshire recorded the highest increase in value, with sales of over £92.2m, an increase of 27.8 per cent compared with the same quarter last year. Aberdeen City showed the largest decrease in market value, down 24.4 per cent to £223.8m.

The highest percentage rise in the volume of sales was in Argyll and Bute, with an annual increase of 24.5 per cent to 462 residential sales. Edinburgh City recorded the highest volume at 3,178, up 8.6 per cent compared to the same quarter the previous year. The largest percentage fall in volume of sales was in Aberdeen City, down 19.5 per cent to 1,063 residential sales.

East Renfrewshire recorded the highest average property price at £241,364 up 11.7 per cent on last year, which was also the largest percentage rise of all the local authorities over the year. The highest percentage fall was recorded in West Dunbartonshire with an average price of £105,859 a fall of 12.7 per cent on last year.

With the exception of detached properties, all property types showed an increase in sales volumes, with flats showing the biggest increase at 11.2 per cent. All property types showed a decrease in average house price in this quarter, with terraced properties showing the biggest decrease down 5.6 per cent to £132,700. Detached, semi-detached and flatted properties showed price decreases of 3.7 per cent, 0.8 per cent and 4.0 per cent respectively.

Cruden launches final five at Dalkeith development

Cruden Homes has launched the final phase at its Woodland Grange development on the edge of Dalkeith in Midlothian.

Just five properties make up the last phase of the development which is bounded by woodland and a cycle path.

All five homes within the Woodland Grange development, which is located on what was once the farmland of the Duke of Buccleuch, are designed to reflect the local environment.

New Aberdeen FC stadium consultation under way

A series of public consultations on Aberdeen FC’s proposals for a new stadium on the outskirts of the city are getting under way.

The stadium and training facilities would be built at Kingsford, close to the Aberdeen bypass, near Westhill.

The Yes to Kingsford Stadium group believes it would be a vital step forward for the club.

The Say No To Kingsford Stadium group argues it is green belt land and would have a negative local impact.

Club chairman Stewart Milne has described Kingsford as “an ideal location for supporters”.

The Dons had previously been considering a relocation to Loirston, to the south of Aberdeen, a proposal which had been marred by planning difficulties.

£2m East Dunbartonshire community hub plans on show

Residents are being urged to attend a drop-in session and view plans for a new £2 million community hub development in Bishopbriggs.

The £2m hub development involves redeveloping the Bishopbriggs Library site on Kirkintilloch Road.

The current library facilities will be improved through a full refurbishment and upgrade programme, bringing together council, library, leisure and cultural services in a single building. In addition, the building will contain a multi-purpose room for children’s activities and reading groups, a computer learning suite, private rooms for confidential business and an enhanced heritage space to incorporate a museum.

The information exhibition will take place between 4pm-8pm on Thursday, 28 July at Memorial Hall on Bamuildy Road, Bishopbriggs.

Council seeks views on transport strategy for Elgin

Moray Council is encouraging residents to take part in a transport strategy survey for Elgin.

More than 450 responses on the plan have been recorded so far and the local authority said it was “vitally important” the public submitted their views before the deadline on 31 July.

Councillors agreed the need for an infrastructure strategy after it cancelled plans for a multi-million pound Elgin western link road earlier this year.

To view the survey, visit here.

Work begins £400,000 3G pitch project in Midlothian

Contractor Allsports has began work to build a new £400,000 3G pitch in Midlothian.

A turf cutting ceremony was held last week to mark the start of construction on the new pitch at Beeslack High School.

Over half of the project’s cost has been funded by the Ministry of Defence’s Community Covenant Grant Scheme. Other funding partners include sportscotland, the council, Penicuik Athletic Youth Football Club and the local community.

The project is to be completed by October.

CALA Homes has sponsorship down to a fine art

Thousands of art lovers will learn the fascinating story of how Scotland’s Harris Tweed conquered the catwalk – thanks to a significant contribution from CALA Homes (East).

The Clo Mor: Harris to Paris exhibition in Edinburgh will now run until the end of August at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, thanks in great part to £5000 in sponsorship.

The support ensures as many people as possible will have the chance to enjoy the visually striking story of how the traditional Scottish cloth ended up as a favoured fabric among the greatest couture houses in the French capital.

Tracing the journey of Tweed from the crofts of Harris to the glamorous world of high fashion via photos, videos and stories, the exhibition, which is also supported by the Harris Tweed Authority, coincides with the Edinburgh International Festival and Edinburgh International Fashion Festival.

The financial backing from CALA Homes contributes significantly to the costs of the exhibition, which has already got off to a flier after the official launch was attended by the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, in conjunction with Edinburgh International Fashion Festival.

The Clo Mor: Harris to Paris Exhibition - created by Martin Scott Powell (Photographer), Malcolm Buick (Design/Art Direction) and Mike Benson (Writer) - is running from 21st June until 31st August at the Waldorf Astoria in Edinburgh.