Building Briefs – May 14th

Hillcrest to build 18 social housing flats in Dundee

Hillcrest Housing Association has been given the go-ahead to build 18 new flats on a gap site in Dundee.

The proposed site off Coupar Angus Road is next to Lochee Health Centre and the site of the former Highgate Shopping Centre, which is now a car park.

Work will begin by late summer and it is expected to be completed late next year.

The development will be made up of 14 two-bedroom flats and four one-bed­ room flats, while there will also be off-street parking for residents.

The project is the latest in a number being handled by Hillcrest as part of regeneration across the city.

In Sinclair Street, yards from the latest proposed site, work is already under way on 32 new housing asso­ciation flats.

And last October, the council revealed plans to put £3 million into a partnership scheme with Hillcrest as part of plans to build 70 homes on the former site of Alexander Street multis in Hilltown.

Meanwhile, late last year, Cullross Ltd and Hillcrest submitted proposals to build 21 flats at Dens Road’s junction with Alexander Street.

Scottish house prices driven up due to ‘pre-election uncertainty’

House prices in Scotland rose in April ahead of the General Election with 31 per cent more surveyors reporting house price increases, according to the latest RICS UK Residential Market Survey.

Scotland was the only country in the UK where the number of properties coming onto the market rose (16 per cent more surveyors reported more properties coming onto the market), while across the rest of the UK, new instructions slipped to a net balance of -21 per cent - the eighth consecutive drop in the last nine months.

On the demand side, buyer activity has fallen since the start of the year - significantly down from the net balance of 79 per cent in October 2014 to 15 per cent in the latest April survey data, with some surveyors suggesting that these trends may have in part been a result of uncertainty ahead of the election.

Meanwhile in the lettings sector, there was no slowing in the growth of tenant demand, which is helping to underpin higher expectations for rents.

Plans to move Langlands School in Dumfries to new campus

A Dumfries school for children with severe and complex needs could be relocated to a new “learning campus” under new council plans.

The existing Langlands School building, which is based at Loreburn Park, is in a poor condition, according to the education department.

They have proposed moving it to a new joint campus serving the north-west of the town.

It is part of a wider scheme known as a the Dumfries Learning Town project.

According to a report to Dumfries and Galloway Council’s education committee, the school for secondary age pupils would be known as New Langlands School.

It would be part of a campus at Alloway Road which would also incorporate Maxwelltown High School, and Lochside and St Ninian’s primaries.

Officers have recommended a formal consultation on the plan.

They said parents and staff have reacted positively to the proposal during initial informal discussions.

Bus lane fines to pay for £1m improvements to Aberdeen’s roads

Aberdeen City Council is to use £1 million from bus lane fines to pay for road repairs.

A £60 fine for drivers travelling in bus lanes during peak times was introduced by the council in 2013.

Over the last 12 months, around £1,075,000 was raised through the scheme, which costs £123,000 a year.

On Tuesday, councillors will be asked to approve a report outlining a series of projects for the coming year, including £150,000 to carry out a study on options for the long-awaited Third Don Crossing.

A £100,000 system to make traffic lights more reliable and cut congestion has also been proposed alongside £55,000 to replace bus shelters.

The 2014/15 bus lane enforcement programme helped fund Bikeability training at 19 primary schools, upgrade cycling facilities in the city and improve 17 bus shelters.

Council allocates £1.6m for regeneration action plan

Glasgow City Council has announced £1.6 million in grants will be given towards businesses and projects in the region.

The Calton Barras Action Plan has been established to help regenerate the Barras market and wider Calton area.

The funds have been made available through the Barras Vacant and Underused Floorspace Grant Scheme.

The programme aims to:

The Scottish Government has provided £1.4 million in funding towards the scheme through its Regeneration Capital Grand Fund (RCGF).

Help to Buy scheme delivers 5,000 sales valued at £1bn

More than 5,000 families and first time buyers have purchased their home through the Help to Buy (Scotland) scheme, housing minister Margaret Burgess revealed yesterday.

A further 2,500 sales are expected to be completed this year through this scheme and the Help to Buy (Scotland) Small Developers scheme.

Over £305 million was allocated to the two schemes and far exceeded the original industry demand for £220m and target of 4,500 homes.

The value of the 5,000 properties sold under the scheme since November, 2013 is over £1 billion.

Help to Buy (Scotland) has been developed and delivered in partnership with Homes for Scotland and the Council of Mortgage Lenders, representing the industry and lenders. They continue to work with Ministers to monitor the schemes.

Dundee celebrates Scottish Housing Quality Standard success

Dundee City Council’s housing stock has met the Scottish Housing Quality Standard (SHQS) thanks to £157 million of funding over more than a decade.

The local authority cash injection ensured more than 12,000 council homes in the city met the rigorous quality standards set down by the Scottish Government in time for the March 31 deadline.

To meet the standard the council installed 11,329 kitchens, 10,163 bathrooms and 10,575 central heating systems. More than 1000 tenants and owners in multi storey developments have received external insulation and been provided with district heating systems to make their homes easier to heat and reduce fuel bills, while an additional 536 low rise properties have been externally insulated.

The SHQS was introduced by the Scottish Government in February 2004 requiring all homes rented from social landlords to be energy efficient, secure and in good order. The majority of council housing in Dundee is flats, with 23 per cent cottage type and 16 per cent either maisonettes or multi-maisonettes. More than half is family-type accommodation with three bedrooms, 16 per cent have one or two bedrooms and the remainder have four or more.

Consultation on proposed Clackmannanshire joint campus

An informal public consultation on three options for a new, purpose-built primary school in Tullibody will open this week.

The consultation will ask for opinions on three options:

The proposals provide an excellent opportunity to bring together education and communities services in a planned way, that take forward the principles of Making Clackmannanshire Better.

A number of public events are also being held over the next few weeks when stakeholders can make their views known.

Western Isles Council announces capital grants

Comhairle nan Eilean Siar has announced two development projects are to receive community capital grants.

The Community Capital Grants Fund (CCGF) has awarded £65,800 to the projects which together total over £800,000.

The Urras Sgire Oighreachd Bharabhais Community Company (USOBCS) plans to purchase the Barvas Estate croft land and salmon hatchery.

The council has made proposals to develop a retail centre at the centre of the site in the old Cross School.

Plans include to replace the area adjacent to the main entrance with an open-plan information point and retail space.

The CCGF is administered by the Regeneration Team, a function of the council’s Economic Development service.