Building Briefs – March 29th

Cube Housing Association launches £40m home transformation campaign

A massive £40 million campaign to transform thousands of homes and make communities safer across the West of Scotland has been launched by Cube Housing Association.

The huge investment over the next five years will see over 2,800 Cube houses get new bathrooms, 322 a new kitchen while hundreds will get new heating, double-glazing, rewiring and secure doors. Many multi-storey blocks will also be revamped with upgraded CCTV and lighting, new-look foyers and even new laundry facilities.

In addition, Cube, which is part of Wheatley Group, plans to build over 840 new affordable homes in an £88.5m new-build programme.

The investment in homes will be carried out in Cube’s communities in Glasgow - which include Wyndford and Broomhill – and West Dunbartonshire as well as smaller areas of housing in North and South Lanarkshire, East Dunbartonshire, Renfrewshire and East Renfrewshire.

Deeside Timberframe announced as new Highland National sponsor

Stonehaven based Deeside Timberframe has been unveiled as the new sponsor of the Highland National festival at Perth Racecourse.

Malcolm Thomson, operations director from Deeside Timberframe, said: “We are delighted to have the opportunity to take the top spot at Perth! Perth is such a fantastic regional location for our business, which expands from Stonehaven to across the whole of the UK.

“We are looking forward to seeing our name in lights and entertaining our clients at such a vibrant sporting occasion, which of course will soon include The Lodge hotel, which we at Deeside are proud to be constructing for Perth.”

Deeside Timberframe is one of Scotland’s leading timber frame design, manufacture and installation companies and is currently working on the new £1.8 million hotel on the grounds of the racecourse which will provide accommodation for 70 stable lads as well as support trade in the local economy 52 weeks a year.

Final phase of Perth housing development completed

The final phase of a housing development at Jeanfield in Perth has been handed over to the local authority.

The project will provide 62 high quality and energy efficient homes, which are multi tenure but all affordable, for Hillcrest Housing Association and Perth and Kinross Council. Developer Cullross delivered forty-eight flats across five cores and a further fourteen colony style homes which forms a small courtyard, all designed by jmarchitects.

The project was only completed when Cullross stepped in as main contractor following the untimely demise of Muirfield Contracts part way through the project. Cullross even managed to employ many of the sub-contractors that had lost employment with Muirfield.

The project has caught a lot of attention since it started in 2014 it was shortlisted for a Scottish Home Award in October 2015 and was the subject of a ministerial visit in December 2015.

Moray Golf Club to develop architectural blueprint

For the first time in over 40 years, Moray Golf Club has engaged a golf course architect to help develop a blueprint for the future of its celebrated golf courses.

The decision to commission an audit of both 18-hole golf courses continues a precedent established at the renowned club of working with golf’s finest designers.

Swan Golf Designs will be the latest name to join a series of eminent golf course architects who have left their mark on the beautiful stretch of links that overlooks the Moray Firth.

Scotland’s commercial real estate attracts £663m of investment in Q1 2016

Scotland’s commercial investment market has had a strong start to the year with £662.6 million worth of transactions expected to exchange or complete by the end of Q1 2016, according to international real estate advisor Savills.

The research suggests a 33 per cent increase on the same period last year (£498m).

With overseas investors growing to take a 41 per cent share of total investment in Scottish commercial property in 2015, Savills says non-domestic appetite continues into the first quarter of 2016 with big players from Germany, the US and the Middle East.

Of the total turnover for Q1, Savills data shows £215m will be invested in Edinburgh, £83m in Aberdeen and £108m in Glasgow. A further circa £257m will be invested through transactions in Scotland’s shopping centre market.

Work to start on Stenhousemuir social housing development

The transformation of the former Police Station and Registrars Office in Stenhousemuir town centre into a new social housing development is to be launched this month.

Developed by Falkirk Council, corporate and housing services, and built by Glasgow construction and manufacturing company CCG, the Main Street development will offer 18 high quality, new build flats for rent to council tenants.

The modern one and two bedroom flats are being built over three storeys and will include a lift to allow disabled access to all floors.

The site was occupied previously by a Police Station and Registry Office, which were vacated recently.

The new development looks to maintain the historical reference of the original two storey Victorian facade, built in 1901, and streetscape by building a new stone façade to match the existing. An additional third storey has been added, and is set back from the stone façade, maintaining the prominence of the façade.

The new development is due to completed early 2017.

New regeneration strategy for Aberdeenshire

A new regeneration strategy aimed at creating strong and diverse towns and vibrant, growing communities has been approved by Aberdeenshire Council.

Previously Aberdeenshire’s Regeneration Strategy focussed the council’s whole regeneration budget of £400,000 on the Fraserburgh area.

A Four Towns Programme, aimed at improving and strengthening the town centres of Banff, Macduff, Fraserburgh and Peterhead was also being delivered.

Following a decision to review this situation by Aberdeenshire Council’s Infrastructure Services Committee (ISC) in 2015, a new approach is now being taken.

The new Regeneration Strategy for Aberdeenshire, “From Strategy to Action: Developing Excellence in our North Coast Communities”, will now be implemented.

While it continues to focus on these four northern towns and the opportunities and assets which can be capitalised on, it moves away from a purely town-centred approach, taking a whole-town approach based on people, place and prosperity.

Building on the work which had gone before, through the Regeneration Strategy Action Plan, it ties in with the Scottish Government’s national regeneration strategy.

The new Aberdeenshire strategy sets out the approach needed for renewal and development, the aspects which require focus and the strategically important issues which are likely to shape the related action plans for each town.

More information, including a copy of the new Regeneration Strategy for Aberdeenshire, is available in the report to committee.

CBRE strengthens Scottish business with strategic senior hires

Property consultancy CBRE has announced the appointment of Mike Rose as an associate director in the Rating and Taxation department, following a growing requirement for expertise in this area of property tax.

Mike joins the team after a 25 year stint as a partner in the Professional Services & Rating team at Rapleys and two years as a consultant, working in both Scotland and England. In addition to in-depth experience in the retail sector, where his clients included Tesco and Morrisons, Mike has a detailed knowledge of specialist markets including the fast food, motor trade and road side sectors.

Based in the Glasgow office, Mike will work alongside Brian Rogan, head of the Rating and Taxation team in CBRE Scotland, in growing the firm’s client base in Scotland as well as servicing CBRE’s existing network of clients.

In addition, CBRE recently appointed Angela Lowe to the position of senior director in the National Agency and Development team. Angela joined from Cushman and Wakefield and is based in the firm’s Edinburgh office.

Wind Towers Scotland selected for EDF ER project

EDF Energy Renewables (EDF ER) has selected Wind Towers Scotland to supply turbine towers for its onshore wind farm projects in the UK.

The Argyll and Bute-based firm signed the five-year agreement with Scottish energy minister Fergus Ewing in Edinburgh last week.

The company has already won an order to supply towers for EDF ER’s Beck Burn wind farm near Carlisle.

The project involves nine turbines being erected at the site which can produce up to 31MW of electricity, enough to power around 17,000 homes.