Building Briefs – March 9th

Glasgow office development, CONNECT110NS located at 110 Queen Street, spearheaded by BAM Properties, has won the Architectural Excellence Award (Commercial Buildings) at this year’s Scottish Property Awards.

The eight storey Grade A office building, situated opposite the Gallery of Modern Art, was designed by architects Cooper Cromar, and has become a recognisable landmark in the city, known for its striking curved glass façade.

Mark Broderick, development director Scotland, BAM Properties, said: “CONNECT110NS has been a terrific development to work on for so many reasons and to receive an accolade and recognition by our industry peers is the icing on the cake.

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“Built during the recession, the development was a calculated risk however, when you incorporate all the right quality ingredients from its prominent location, striking architecture and quality build, we were confident with that risk. We have been fortunate to also attract very good occupiers and the opening of the restaurant and Armani has really transformed this part of the city’s Style Mile.”

However, it was a double celebration for BAM Properties for the company’s former Managing Director, John Burke, who retired at the end of last year, was presented with Property Personality of the Year.

Dougie Peters, managing director, BAM Properties, added: “With many years of experience of working in the property sector, John is a familiar face in the industry and his infectious sense of humour and exuberant enthusiasm makes him very deserving of this award.”

 

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Portsoy harbour saved from development

A historic Scots harbour used as the backdrop for the remake of Whisky Galore has been saved from a modern development by a Government planning chief.

The plans, for a new “boat shed” and self-catering accommodation beside the 17th-century harbour at Portsoy, Banffshire, drew a storm of protest after they were initially recommended for approval by council officials.

Residents felt the development, on land at a former salt house near the harbour’s edge, would damage a renowned boat festival held annually at the port.

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Filmmaker Alan Wands, who used the conservation zone as the backdrop for his remake of the Compton Mackenzie classic Whisky Galore, starring comedian Eddie Izzard, said the development would damage the prospect of other movie projects using the location.

In a letter to planning officials Wands warned it might make the beauty spot impossible to use as a “period” location.

 

MSP visits landmark Quartermile regeneration project in Edinburgh

Marco Biagi, MSP for Edinburgh Central, visited Quartermile – a Pride in the Job award-winning NHBC landmark development last week.

Designed by renowned architects Foster + Partners, Quartermile is the largest privately-funded urban regeneration in Scotland, which has been built on the World Heritage site of the old Royal Infirmary in the heart of Edinburgh’s Old Town.

Mr Biagi visited the site – which features over 1,000 new home, 350,000 sq. ft. of premium office space and 65,000 sq. ft. of leisure and retail space – with Alison Dickie who is the SNP candidate for Edinburgh Central.

The name Quartermile comes from the fact that the site measures a quarter mile from corner to corner and is only a quarter of a mile from Edinburgh’s famous Royal Mile.

There are eight listed buildings on the site – five of which have been converted into apartments and are occupied. Two are currently in the process of being converted into studio and one-bedroom apartments. The development has created jobs for 700 workers and over 170 affordable homes.

The event was organised by NHBC to showcase high quality new homes in the North East. In 2015, Quartermile site manager, Bob Strachan, was awarded with an NHBC Pride in the Job Seal of Excellence Award - which recognises ongoing commitment to quality.

 

Work begins on third phase of council housing in Cellardyke

Work to deliver a further 22 homes to a Fife Council development in Cellardyke is now underway.

The third phase of homes for rent at Silverdykes, which will bring the total number on the development to 57, will be made up of four 1-bed cottage flats, eight 2-bed cottage flats, four 2-bed houses and six 3-bed houses.

Construction work on the second phase of homes is almost complete with the first of the 14 homes planned for handover at the end of this month. It will be a mix of cottage flats, bungalows and three & four bed-houses.

The third phase of homes in Cellardyke, which are being built by Muir Homes, is expected to be ready to welcome their first tenants in late 2016.

The second phase of homes in this development received a contribution of £196,000 of Scottish Government funding.

 

Start date for work on Perth Crematorium road announced

Work on a road that will run through part of the grounds of Perth Crematorium and is regarded as being vital to a massive housing development for the city will begin later this year.

Perth and Kinross Council has confirmed construction of the crematorium link road beside McDiarmid Park will start in October.

The road is due to open in March 2019.

The link and a new A9/ A85 junction are part of the first phase of the Perth Transport Futures Project.

The council is awaiting correspondence from Scottish Ministers regarding a series of compulsory purchase orders.

A council spokesperson said the authority expects confirmation of the land purchases towards the end of this month or early April.

The new road is regarded as being essential for the development of the planned £1 billion Bertha Park development.

It would see around 3,000 homes, three schools, a care home and retail units built on land to the north west of Perth over a 30-year period.

Perth and Kinross Council also claims the project will open up development land at potential housing developments at Almond Valley and Perth West.

It could also relieve present and future traffic congestion in the A85 Crieff Road corridor.

 

Keepmoat to bring new homes and jobs to Hamilton

A new housing development in Hamilton is under construction as housing specialist Keepmoat bids to build on the wider regeneration in the area to meet local needs.

Keepmoat will be building 60 new homes on St Ninians Road, and will work in partnership with Clyde Valley Housing Association to deliver 20 properties for affordable rent, with the remainder for private sale.

The opening of the new development, which has been named Cooperfield, also coincides with the new allocation of Help to Buy Scotland; meaning purchasers will have the option of securing a new home in Hamilton with just a five per cent deposit and can take advantage of an interest free equity loan, of up to fifteen per cent, from government funding.

This is the second new housing development Keepmoat has launched in Scotland. The firm opened a Homes division late last year; which will work alongside the existing and successful regeneration arm of the business.

Keepmoat has said it has a number of upcoming sites and job opportunities in the pipeline.

 

Work starts on £200,000 resurfacing project in Inverclyde

A £200,000 roads resurfacing project is to get underway in Inverclyde.

The local authority is to fund the work to upgrade the main route linking Port Glasgow to Bridge of Weir.

Contractors will begin resurfacing the A761 Port Glasgow Road in Kilmacolm between Auchenbothie Road and Woodrow Avenue this week.

The project is part of the council’s £29 million five-year investment in roads, pathways, street lighting and structures.

 

£1m of funding for West Dunbartonshire sports facility

West Dunbartonshire Council has secured £1 million from the Scottish Government’s Regeneration Capital Grant Fund for a new sports facility in Clydebank.

The project to develop a new synthetic pitch, pavilion and community allotments at Whitecrook is receiving a share of financial support from the fund which was developed to transform communities.

The £3m facility, which is being developed by the council in conjunction with Clydebank Sports Hub, includes creating a flood-lit pitch for rugby, Gaelic football and football and upgrading the pavilion to improve changing and community facilities. Once developed the site could be considered as a focal point for Gaelic sports in Scotland.

A separate project is being developed to create a skate park in the area.

 

Work to begin on council housing project in Aberdeen

Work is due to start this month on Aberdeen’s largest council house development in more than a decade.

Aberdeen City Council is set to develop almost 100 new homes at the former Smithfield Primary School site in the Middlefield area of the city.

The extensive development marks a key milestone in the local authority’s objectives to roll out thousands of new, 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.

It will also include open green spaces with access to a revamped play park opposite the site.

Phase One (Provost Rust Drive) will offer 12 semidetached homes while Phase Two (Smithfield Drive and Clarke Street) will comprise a mix of 30 semidetached properties and 57 one/two bedroom apartments.

 

LED lighting project to begin along M8

Over 100 lamps are to switch to LED lighting along the M8 in south west Scotland.

Scotland TranServ has already replaced almost 200 lights across the trunk roads in Renfrewshire.

The second phase of the project is due to last for five nights and will begin on Sunday, 13 March.

Existing mast lighting columns along the motorway will be replaced and the traditional sodium lamps replaced by modern LED lights which reduce energy usage by up to 53 per cent.

A further two schemes are due to begin later this month, with the full project expected to be completed by the end of March.

The programme is part of a Scottish Government drive to reduce carbon emission by 47 per cent by 2027.

 

18 green projects benefit from over £430,000

18 projects are to share over £430,000 to transform the local environment and add value to the economy, environment minister Aileen McLeod said today.

The Central Scotland Green Network (CSGN) Development Fund supports trees, woodlands and green infrastructure, encourage community growing and promote active travel to help transform the quality of life for people living and working in the area.

This is Europe’s largest greenspace initiative, and projects from stretching from Ayrshire and Inverclyde in the west, to Fife and the Lothians in the east have received funding to restore and transform the landscape.

 

Robertson hands over 19 homes to Moray Council

A construction firm has handed over keys to 19 new homes to Moray Council, marking the completion of an 11-month £2.6 million affordable housing project.

Located on a former Dufftown brownfield site, the energy efficient homes represent the first local authority affordable housing project in the Speyside area for over a generation.

Robertson, appointed to deliver the contract in March 2015, allocated a team of 30 construction workers to create the mix of 11 two and three bedroom houses and eight one and two bedroom flats.

In its former life, the site housed a cooperage and auction mart, before it was acquired by Moray Council in early 2015 in response to demand for affordable housing in Speyside.

 

DLA Piper to host free seminar on second home tax

DLA Piper will host a free seminar this week on the imminent changes to second home buying following the introduction of the extra charge for buy-to-let properties and second homes which was passed by the Scottish Parliament yesterday.

Hosted by DLA Piper’s real estate practice, the breakfast seminar will take place from 8am on Friday 11 March at the firm’s Edinburgh office.

Mark Burgess, tax partner at DLA Piper will present an update on tax issues in the PRS and student accommodation sector in the UK as well as looking at the 3 per cent LBTT and SDLT supplements on purchases of “additional” residential property above £40,000, which are due to be introduced on 1 April 2016.

The seminar will qualify for 45 minutes of CPD. Registration will take place and breakfast will be available from 8am and the event finishes at 9.30am.

To register, contact Angela Saunders at angela.saunders@dlapiper.com.

DLA Piper is located at Collins House, Rutland Square, Edinburgh.