Building Briefs – October 10th

New plans to revitalise Broad Street as part of the City Centre Masterplan have been given the go-ahead by Aberdeen City Council.

The plans include a transformed and improved streetscape which will extend to Union Street and include the Gallowgate/Upperkirkgate junction, creating an area with interest, vibrancy and vitality.

The space, which will be buses-only for traffic and a shared footway for pedestrians and cyclists, can be used for a range of events that can be programmed throughout the year.

The design’s key points include a water feature, a raised grass planter giving a space to relax and enjoy the view of Marischal College, several trees to introduce greenery, and a granite bench seating defining some of the areas.

There will also be improvements in lighting to Marischal College allowing greater flexibility in uplighting and ‘theming’ the building and also allowing it to be integrated with lighting to the new water feature. The Robert the Bruce statue will remain in its original position, and servicing for events will be built into the scheme to allow for a multi-use space.

The new designs for Broad Street have also taken into consideration people with sensory disabilities and mobility issues, with thought put into the colour, texture and the overall design of the footways and roads so they are distinguishable.

Informal pedestrian crossing points are identified with tactile paving on the footway and be paved in a contrasting material to assist in identifying them to people with visual impairment. The design also takes into consideration tree heights, car parking, street lighting and street furniture.

The plans include the shared pedestrian/cycle pavement extending towards Union Street with the existing Caithness paving, the traffic lights at Upperkirkgate and Gallowgate to be removed and replaced with a shared surface for vehicles and a roundel (a mini-roundabout with a road surface feature that indicates roundabout driving rules apply and pedestrians are given priority), and a Toucan crossing (pedestrian/cycle crossing) created at the Union Street/Broad Street junction.

A two-stage tender process will now be undertaken with the ambition to have a contractor in place in early November 2016, and a preferred contractor in place during December. It is anticipated that work would start on site in early February with a six-month programme, with Broad Street between Upperkirkgate and Queen Street closed for the entire duration.

The cost of the design work, traffic order and construction is likely to be met in full by the money contributed by Muse for public realm work on Broad Street, Sustrans contribution, developer obligations money to improve Core Paths, and CCMP capital money.

Housing associations awarded funding for capital projects in Glasgow

Glasgow City Council has approved almost £3.6 million of funding for four projects that have successfully bid for Regeneration Capital Grant Fund (RCGF) support.

RCGF support is given to projects that help to deliver large-scale improvements to deprived areas, and which engage and involve local communities and can demonstrate an ability to deliver sustainable regeneration.

Queens Cross Housing Association was awarded £1,330,000 for its ‘Growing Spaces and Places’ project with Scottish Canals and other partners, while Spireview Housing Association will provide a new community centre for Royston, with the help of a £575,000 award.

An allocation of £1m will help St Martin’s Church in Castlemilk be converted into an activity centre by Glasgow Building Preservation Trust and Ardenglen Housing Association.

Finally WASPs Studios was awarded £662,926 for its Briggait Creation Centre project.

Recent projects that have benefited from this funding include the Calton Barras Action Plan (£1.4m), Cadder Community Centre (£1m) and a community centre in Barmulloch (£350,000).

The most recent allocation saw £1.8m of RCGF financial support from the council given towards the redevelopment of the B Listed Westmuir Street School, a landmark East End building close to Parkhead Cross, for the creation of a local enterprise centre with a mix of community and office space.

Fife window supplier sees chink of light with sales jump

Profits at Velux Company were flat in 2015 despite the Fife-headquartered roof light window supplier enjoying a jump in full-year sales.

The Glenrothes based firm – part of the Danish VKR Holdings group – delivered a £5.8 million increase in turnover to £140.8m in the year to December 31 and produced a pre-tax profit of £3.32m.

The figures compared with sales of £135m in 2014 and a pre-tax return of £3.52m.

Operating profit for 2015 was also flat at £3.32m.

In his strategic report to the accounts, managing director Keith Riddle said 2015 had been a “satisfactory” period for the company.

The accounts were signed off two days before the Brexit vote but no mention was made of the potential impact of the poll in the firm’s principal risk profile.

The documents show Velux Company carried an average of 206 staff in 2015, an increase of 31 on the number it had throughout the year previous.

Renfrewshire’s Westway Park welcomes Interserve

Real estate private equity fund manager Moorfield Group has signed a deal which will see Interserve lease industrial space at their Westway Park in Renfrewshire.

The international support services and construction group has agreed an initial 12-month lease at Unit L3, which extends to 19,000 sq ft

The property has recently been fully refurbished to provide a high quality storage and distribution facility with dedicated service yard and car parking areas.

Interserve is involved in several major projects across Scotland including the Haymarket development in Edinburgh and will use the unit to service its contracts in the west of Scotland.

Oregon delivers leap in profits as margins improve

Oregon Timber Frame has reported a near four-fold increase in profits to £2 million last year, accounts newly filed at Companies House show.

Selkirk-based Oregon, which manufactures timber systems for the construction and housing industries, said gross margins increased during the year because of lower material costs, a strong pound and a 35 per cent increase in turnover.

The company saw turnover surge to £20.2m, up from £15m the year before, without establishment costs going up.

DM Hall opts for experience with new commercial property surveyors in Aberdeen

Two new senior recruits have been appointed as commercial property surveyors in Aberdeen by DM Hall.

Kevin Jackson joins as senior associate, commercial agency and Robert Eunson as senior associate, commercial valuation.

Both men are highly-experienced property professionals who have held key positions both in private practice and in the development sector in Aberdeen over several years.

Carbon Futures signs Link Group framework agreement

Glasgow based energy consultancy company Carbon Futures has been awarded a framework agreement with Link Group to provide energy consultancy services for new-build housing developments over the next four years with an estimated worth in excess of £2 million.

The framework will mainly cover the provision of energy and sustainability consultancy services for new build developments ranging from mainstream housing to a variety of special needs projects.

The framework tenures will cover all affordable, private rented and market sale.

Councils make progress towards sharing services agreement

Progress has been made on the principle of sharing services across East Dunbartonshire, Inverclyde and West Dunbartonshire Councils.

All three local authorities agreed to both the establishment of a Joint Committee, effective from 1 November 2016, and the terms of a corresponding Minute of Agreement.

The Joint Committee establishes the governance framework for the potential of sharing services and will consider any business cases developed to pursue this. The Committee will comprise four elected members from each council with equal voting rights and the positions of chair and vice chair will rotate every two years.

East Dunbartonshire Council will take on the role of chair and West Dunbartonshire Council the role of vice chair for the initial two year period.

A working group has been established with trade union and senior management representation from each of the three councils which will meet regularly to discuss developments going forward.

Progress on reducing vacant and derelict land in Glasgow

Glasgow City Council has considered the progress made over recent years in tackling the issue of derelict and vacant land in the city, and approved the programme for Vacant and Derelict Land Fund for the next year.

The city saw over 40 hectares removed from the Vacant and Derelict Land Register in 2015, with 43 sites fully removed, with the foremost use of the new sites being for residential, manufacturing, recreation and leisure, retailing and education purposes. This follows the pattern of the past six years.

A programme for action on vacant and derelict land over the next year was approved, with funding of approximately £2.575 million available. While this is reduced from the previous funding of £3.947m, it reflects the funding reductions on such programmes nationally.

The new programme will see a number of projects, including:

These and future projects will lead to the development of new housing, business, leisure and green space, as well as the creation of employment and training opportunities for local people during construction and beyond.

In Glasgow, the issue of vacant and derelict land is compounded by the complex mix of poor ground conditions, fragmented ownership and inadequate infrastructure relating to many sites that restricts the availability of land ready for development and acts as a brake on the economic potential of certain areas.

Council seeks views on developing new Inverurie sports facilities

Aberdeenshire Council has launched an online survey to gather public views on developing new sports facilities in Inverurie.

A number of new facilities are set to be delivered as part of the new £54 million Inverurie Community Campus. Other anticipated developments include a proposed extension to the Garioch Sports Centre.

To view the survey, visit here.

Brechin completes new flood prevention scheme

Brechin’s multi-million pound flood prevention scheme is now officially complete.

Funded by the Scottish Government and Angus Council, the Brechin Flood Prevention Scheme got underway at the start of 2015, with Morrison Construction appointed to carry out the work.

The scheme has included the building of direct defences, flood walls and food embankments, as well as upgrades to the existing surface water drainage system and the Denburn culvert and the installation of three submerged pumping stations.

It is designed to provide a 1 in 200 years’ current day standard of defence and has been one of the biggest civil engineering projects ever undertaken in Angus.

NHBC welcomes two new non-executive directors to its Board

NHBC has announced that Crest Nicholson’s chief executive Stephen Stone and Notting Hill Housing’s chief executive, Kate Davies have joined its Board as non-executive directors.

Stephen has over 30 years’ experience in the house building and construction industries and was appointed CEO at Crest Nicholson in 2005. He is also a director at the Home Builders Federation and a Chartered Architect.

Kate joined Notting Hill Housing as CEO in 2004 and was previously chief executive of Servite Houses and director of housing in Brighton and Hove.