Building Briefs – March 30th

Work begins on new West Dunbartonshire workshops

Scottish Government minister Margaret Burgess has kick started the construction of new £1.8m workshops at the Vale of Leven Industrial Estate.

The minister for housing and welfare joined councilors from West Dunbartonshire to cut the first sod for the development which will improve the local economy in years to come.

The ground breaking ceremony marks the start of construction on the council project which will create 13 new workshop units for small and growing businesses. It is set for completion this autumn.

The council is working with development partner, Hub West Scotland, to deliver the units which will range in size from 500 to 1000 square feet.

The workshops are being constructed on an area of land within the industrial estate which has not been developed.

Further collaboration explored for roads maintenance

New ways of delivering maintenance are being considered by Scotland’s roads authorities as part of continuing efforts to improve services and make the best use of the available resources.

The work, which is part of the Scottish Government’s efforts to continue to collaborate with local authorities on shared maintenance services, follows on from the National Roads Maintenance Review.

An extra £2.5 million pounds has been invested by Transport Scotland in repairs to the trunk road network this financial year, bringing the total investment on resurfacing and patching across Scotland’s trunk road network in 2014/2015 to £57m.

Cube starts £11m project to cut tenants’ fuel bills

Three communities in Glasgow will benefit from a massive £11 million investment to make homes more energy efficient.

Around 700 flats will be transformed and made warmer thanks to the latest multi-million-pound project by Cube Housing Association and Scottish Gas.

Hundreds of tenants in the city’s Broomhill and Gorget areas will benefit from a new state-of-the-art district heating system and solid wall insulation.

Tenants in Maryhill will also see new energy-efficient heating installed in their homes.

Work, which began last week, is expected to take around 12 months.

Cube, which is part of Wheatley Group, and Scottish Gas recently completed a £20m programme on 1,900 homes in the Wyndford Estate in Maryhill, Glasgow.

Scottish Gas is undertaking the latest work as part of the Energy Companies Obligation (ECO), which focuses on providing energy efficiency measures to low income and vulnerable customers and those living in hard to heat homes.

New lease of life for Leith’s Custom House

The City of Edinburgh Council has reached an in-principle agreement with the Scottish Historic Buildings Trust (SHBT) to lease Leith’s Custom House from April 2015.

The final terms of the agreement between SHBT and the council will be put to the finance & resources committee for consideration in May.

The venture will see the Trust, which already operates Riddle’s Court, work in tandem with the council and the local community to restore the building as a hub in the heart of the community.

Initial repairs and cleaning inside and out of the building will take place over the course of Spring 2015 to prepare the venue for public access. A feasibility study will be commissioned in due course to also consider the long-term use and development of Custom House.

Last month, the council announced that it had successfully purchased the historic building, after submitting an offer to the National Museums Scotland late last year.

Ayr’s Gaiety Theatre gets £590,000 towards £2.4m revamp

Plans to fully redevelop Ayr’s Gaiety Theatre are in the “home straight” after the project was awarded £590,000.

The cash - a £500,000 loan and a grant of £90,000 - means that the planned refurbishment is only about £300,000 short of its £2.4m funding target.

Originally built in 1902, the B-listed theatre closed in 2009 but reopened in 2012 after a campaign to save it.

The Ayr Gaiety Partnership is leading efforts to make the theatre a cultural and educational hub for Ayrshire.

The £500,000 loan comes from the £16 million social growth fund, which was set up to provide financial assistance to charities and social enterprises.

The £90,000 grant is from the Scottish Government’s people and communities fund.

Trump submits plan for homes and holiday lets in Aberdeenshire

US businessman Donald Trump has submitted plans for hundreds of houses and holiday homes at the Menie Estate in Aberdeenshire.

The move comes after the tycoon submitted proposals for a new 400-capacity ballroom and banquet hall.

The application proposes “planning permission in principle for the erection of 850 residential units” and “1900 leisure accommodation units with Ancillary Commercial Development”.

A statutory determination deadline has been set by Aberdeenshire Council for Monday April 13.

Trump International had also submitted a proposal for a second golf course at the site.

Plans for the MacLeod Course were first tabled in 2013, but the development was later put on hold.

Repairs for 3G pitch at Newton Stewart’s Blairmount Park

A £500,000 synthetic football pitch needs thousands of pounds worth of remedial action, less than 18 months after it was laid.

Newton Stewart Football Club’s 3G pitch was funded by Dumfries and Galloway Council and sportscotland.

However the “all-weather” surface has been dogged by flooding problems, which forced the cancellation one South of Scotland league game.

Councillors have been asked to approve almost £12,000 worth of drainage works.

Council teams repair over 4,500 potholes in West Dunbartonshire

More than 4,500 potholes have been repaired by West Dunbartonshire Council in the last 10 months.

The council has two dedicated teams out on the area’s roads inspecting and repairing any safety defects they spot to make roads as safe as possible.

The teams also respond to any pothole reports received from residents and aim to inspect and repair significant defects within 48 hours.

The council maintains over 220 miles of roads and invests over £500,000 annually on inspecting and repairing potholes.