Building Briefs – May 27th

A key stage in the development of the new Dundee railway station concourse has been reached with the installation of more than 40 massive support beams.

Weighing in at up to 18 tonnes each the beams will support the new concourse and buildings over the main east coast rail line.

In total more than 500 tonnes of steel is being lifted into place by Balfour Beatty using a giant mobile crane that picks the beams up in pairs to ensure stability. At up to 38.5m long the 46 beams are only part of the current phase of construction with the lift and escalator pits at platform level progressing well, along with the main building foundations.

Work is still on track for completion early in 2018.

Link’s affordable housing development in Newton Mearns complete

Link Group Ltd has completed an affordable housing development of 14 new homes at Ayr Road in Newton Mearns.

The properties were built by CALA Homes as part of a wider development, and consist of two-bedroom homes for social and mid market rent. The £1.7 million development secured £502,000 from the Scottish Government.

This is the first development within East Renfrewshire Council that includes properties for mid market rent.

All of the properties meet Link’s housing design standards and have gas central heating and hot water systems, high thermal insulation and double glazing to create warm, comfortable and energy efficient homes that will be easy and economical to run.

Link is also currently onsite at Barcapel, Newton Mearns where a further 33 homes for social rent will be available from March 2017.

Bridge beams to arrive for AWPR/B-T project

A number of bridge beams are due to arrive this weekend for the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route/Balmedie to Tipperty (AWPR/B-T) project, Transport Scotland has announced.

Weighing around 65 tonnes each, the five concrete beams will begin arriving on site from 8am on Sunday, 29 May.

At 42 metres long, the beams are some of the longest to be used on the multi-million pound project and will be installed on the Craibstone Junction Underbridge.

In addition, 14 beams for the Derbeth Overbridge will begin arriving on the same weekend.

Plans approved to replace high school swimming pool in Moray

Plans have been approved to build a new swimming pool as part of a schools replacement project in Moray.

Councillors voted in favour to build a new 800-capacity school instead of a straightforward replacement for Lossiemouth High School.

The cost of the new school and swimming pool is estimated at £31 million.

The Scottish Government will contribute £17.3m towards the project via the Scottish Futures Trust.

Plans to replace the school were announced earlier this year as part of the final phase of the national Schools for the Future programme.

Sign of exciting times ahead for new council homes in North Lanarkshire

North Lanarkshire Council is moving forward with its next phase of new council houses which will see a further 282 modern homes built across 13 sites.

Entitled NL Homes by the council, the development of these new sites is part of its current £172 million investment programme to build 1,150 new homes, around a third of which have already been completed. Signs are now in place on the sites forming the next phase of the programme so local residents know what’s planned for these areas.

The new sites earmarked will provide a mix of cottage flats and family homes for local people, and work is due to get underway over the next 12-18 months. To date the council has completed 356 new homes with a further 25 due for completion next month on the site of the former Glencairn Tower in Motherwell.

All of the homes are built with energy efficiency in mind, achieving at least a ‘good’ eco rating to help minimise running costs for tenants.

In addition, they meet Housing for Varying Needs specification which means homes are more accessible to adapt to tenants’ mobility needs. The homes are also ‘Secured by Design’ accredited, which involves Police Scotland architectural liaison officers having input into the layout and designs to ensure we build safe and secure environments.

A contribution is received from the Scottish Government towards the development costs at each site.

Morrison Construction to begin roof repair work at Stromness Primary School

Morrison Construction is to begin roof repairs at Stromness Primary School.

Scaffolding will be erected on Saturday, 28 May, and slate repair works will begin on 06 June.

More NFB members want to leave the EU than remain

The National Federation of Builders (NFB) asked a panel of 100 members whether they would like to remain in the EU.

When asked if their business would benefit, 47 per cent said their business would benefit more from being outside the EU, with 33 per cent stating that remaining would be of greater benefit.

There was a slight shift in opinion when asked if the UK would benefit from being in or out of the EU. Here, 43% said they would like to leave versus 39 per cent for staying and 18 per cent undecided.

The NFB has been providing its members with weekly briefings on different EU issues, such as trade agreements, skills, immigration and the impact of EU legislation. These impartial documents are designed to support members and help them make sense of some of the inflammatory messages the referendum debate has generated.

Quarter of over-55s in Scotland ‘plan to downsize their property’

Over a quarter (26 per cent) of people in Scotland aged 55 or over are considering or will consider downsizing in the future, while a further 10 per cent have already downsized, a new survey has found.

The poll from YouGov was commissioned by retirement housebuilder McCarthy & Stone to highlight downsizing as an important part of the solution to solving Scotland’s housing issues.

According to the survey, most people in Scotland (58 per cent) cite lower maintenance as reason for downsizing, followed by a third (39 per cent) who say it is due to their children leaving home. Just under a third (31 per cent) cite health reasons followed by 27 per cent who say that downsizing would help reduce the cost of bills.

McCarthy & Stone is calling on government to provide greater incentives to help older people move and provide more housing choices for later life buyers to free up housing market.

Scotland sees rent rises fall to three-year low

Annual rent rises in Scotland are at a three-year low, although Edinburgh is bucking the trend with record price increases, the latest Scotland Buy-to-Let Index from Your Move has found.

Average residential rents in Scotland have climbed 0.6 per cent in the twelve months to April 2016, in the slowest annual rise witnessed since March 2013. This marks a significant downturn in rates of year-on-year growth from 1.1 per cent recorded in March, and 2.1 per cent in February.

In absolute terms, this £3 annual increase means that the average rent in Scotland now stands at £542 per month. This is the lowest Scottish rents have been since they stood at £539 in April 2015.

On a monthly basis, typical Scottish rents have fallen for the second consecutive month, down 0.4 per cent since March. This is at odds with the trend seen south of the border, with average rents across England & Wales rising 0.3 per cent month-on-month in April.

Despite the wider slowdown across the country, Your Move said the annual rent rises in Edinburgh and the Lothians “continue to accelerate”, reaching a peak pace of 10.5 per cent last month.

The jump has taken average monthly rents in the region to a record high of £651, up a considerable £62 from a year ago, the report found.

Clackmannanshire Council launches £100,000 Community Fund

Clackmannanshire Council is encouraging community groups to apply for grants from the £100,000 Community Development Fund.

The initiative aims to help regenerate and improve the physical environment and community facilities in the region.

Grants can be put towards various uses, including securing an area of land to bring buildings back into use, encouraging economic development, or improving housing, social and recreational facilities.

Other successful applications involve projects such as installing new fencing, upgrading toilets, new roofs, re-wiring and replacement windows.

For more information, visit here.