An application for 67 apartments in Lonend was validated by Renfrewshire Council’s planning department this week.

Kelvin Properties, a developer renowned for regenerating urban brownfield sites into thriving residential communities, hopes its plans will provide a much-needed boost to Paisley town centre, which was hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The site, which has been vacant since 2018, lies south-east of Paisley town centre, on the corner of Sauce Street and Lonend.

Kelvin Properties aims to redevelop the site – purchased in September last year – and provide high-quality environmentally-friendly residential apartments that will provide new accommodation for members of the local community and attract others to move to the area.

Marc Taylor, director of Kelvin Properties, said: “We hope to reinvigorate a derelict vacant site, and in doing so help to reinvigorate Paisley.

“The location is fantastic from a sustainable travel perspective. We see this as a key gateway site to Paisley town centre, for those travelling from the south along Lonend. We have sought to design and create a high-quality development that welcomes people to the heart of the town, while removing vacant buildings which can be an eyesore.

“With the development’s proximity to the town centre, as well as its accessible prices and impressive environmentally friendly features, we expect it to be extremely attractive to first-time buyers and young professionals.

“We truly believe this development can help Paisley thrive. We are now very excited to progress our plans with Renfrewshire Council and bring our concept to life.”

Green travel will be encouraged, with a bus stop directly in front of the site and two train stations within a 10-minute walk offering direct trains to Glasgow city centre. There will also be 15 active EV charging stations within the site which help encourage the use of electric cars.

The urban regeneration specialist plans to re-use as much of the crushed material from the demolition as possible to accommodate the three flatted blocks, while solar PV panels will be used on the roof to power the three apartment blocks and further reduce carbon emissions.

Twenty-five one-bedroom apartments in the development have been designed to include a standalone home working area out with the bedroom – a feature Kelvin Properties believes will future-proof the development in the wake of the pandemic.

The plans, which include a fully equipped children’s play area, were submitted to Renfrewshire Council last week. If successful in gaining planning, Kelvin Properties hopes to commence works on-site later this year.