Edinburgh Development Summary

[gweilo]

Anyone have any information or pictures on the VA Tech factory in Leith according to this months Prospect magazine there are major moves afoot from the Scottish Executive for utilising it as a cultural facility:

http://www.prospectmagazine.com/members/news.php

It would house Anthony d’Offay’s collection of modern art (big stushie about this a month or so ago as it includes works by Hirst, Gilbert and George etc etc but would be subject to the Executive buying it for a mere £60 million) and would also contain the Scottish National Photography Centre (which as I understood it was going to be sited in the Royal High school), and the RCAHMS as well as the private letters archive (which I thought was in the National Library in Edinburgh) that contains correspondence from the likes of Jane Austen, Lord Byron and Sir Walter Scott etc etc.

All this when when municpal museums in Glasgow are still underfunded, and struggling, and though its not been reported yet one of them may well be about to close! Also what about all the underutilised space right in the heart of Glasgow such as the Royal High School, or the Egyptian Halls!

[crusty_bint]

Originally Posted by gweilo

All this when when municpal museums in Glasgow are still underfunded, and struggling, and though its not been reported yet one of them may well be about to close!

Oh dear, which one? McLellan Galleries?

Small pic here: http://www.vatech-td.com/view.php3?f_id=7578&LNG=EN

[gweilo]

Thanks for the picture crusty. Not the first thing that springs to mind as a major cultural institution is it? And you didn't hear it from me!

[maccoinnich]

No, it doesn't really have the industrial chic of Gilbert Scott's Bankside or Battersea power stations.

I don't really understand why it must be kept together as the "d'Offay collection". Sure, were he donating it, like William Burrell, or running it as his own private gallery, like Saatchi in London, it might make more sense, but if the executive has to buy it, then surely they should be free to do what they want with it? The Gallery of Modern Art in Edinburgh has some wonderful assets, like the Charles Jencks squiggly lawn out front, and the sculpture garden around it, but even now it doesn't have nearly enough room to display all their collections. A well thought out extension to the back, with views over the water of Leith could surely massively increase their space, and allow their existing collection and some of the Anthony d'Offay stuff, assuming it's bought, to be shown.

Other pieces from it could surely be on permanent display in Glasgow, in a proper gallery of modern art. (Okay, I haven't been in, but it looks tiny, and I remember reading a comment somewhere that it was bereft of Douglas Gordon, rich in Beryl Cook).

[crusty_bint]

No probs Mums the word That building looks... well... like a corrugated shed! This Edinburgh-centricity really pisses me off at times! Like you say, what about all the redundant space in Glasgow? The Barclay Curle shed (forget the name of the German shed its a copy of) would have been perfect for it too and has plenty of room to expand.

Hey ho tho.

[gweilo]

To be honest if Glasgow had the balls and brass cheek they should offer up free space to Richard Demarco for his million strong collection. If Edinburgh lacks the civic vision to continue to provide storage for it so that a major european collection winds up sitting in a shed next door to Torness in East Lothian then lets pull a fast one! For a city of its size Edinburgh has an embarassment of museums. With its beauty and stature as a city what is it so afraid of?! Surely they can afford to spread the cultural baubbles around?

The whole sorry saga of the National Gallery of Scottish Art and Design in Glasgow sums it up well. Torpedoed twice on different sites by the Edinburgh elite determined that the Playfair project would go ahead. Sure the Playfair project was important but then Glasgow has to go and suffer the embarassment of doing the rounds cap in hand to get its equivalent upgraded to international standards. Fair and level playing field please (if you pardon the pun).

[maccoinnich]

The whole Richard Demarco debacle is a joke.

----------------------------
http://edinburghnews.scotsman.com/in...?id=2154642005

City eyesore to be sold off for redevelopment

BRIAN FERGUSON AND JOANNA VALLELY

HERITAGE leaders were celebrating today after the death knell was sounded for Edinburgh's ugliest building.

The St James Shopping Centre on Leith Street has been put on the market with a £160 million price tag. It has raised hopes that the eyesore will be redeveloped into a world-class building.


The shopping centre, along with St James House, the controversial former Scottish Office building, the 147-bed Thistle Hotel and the John Lewis department store, has been put up for sale by its pension fund owners.

More than 20 major development companies in the UK and overseas have already been approached as potential buyers for the site.

And today one of the city's leading architects today called for an international design competition to be launched to find a building for the prominent site.

It is thought a major new residential development will be built on top of an overhauled shopping mall, creating around 200 apartments. At least 250,000sq ft of extra retail space for the city is expected to be created. City council leader Donald Anderson said: "This is great news and a real opportunity to improve the retail offering in the city centre.

"Everyone knows what a challenge it will be to redevelop the site. I would hope any developer would look at trying to improve the look of the whole area.

"St James House is Scotland's ugliest building, I've never heard anyone say a good word about it, but it's going to be very complex to overhaul the shopping centre."

David McDonald, director of heritage watchdog the Cockburn Association,

said: "James Craig's original New Town layout was wrecked in the 1960s, in an era of complete disregard for traditional values and heritage."

Andrew Holmes, city development director with the city council, said: "The St James was a major architectural mistake, but a major step forward in providing retail space. We would keenly support an extended development that could give the city more shopping facilities and erase some architectural errors."

Award-winning Edinburgh architect Richard Murphy called on the council to instigate an international design contest to ensure that any new redevelopment was a fitting replacement for St James House.

"I would prefer if the whole of the St James Centre was to go but there will be a tangled web of long leases, which might be very difficult to untangle.

"Whatever happens, I believe it is very important for the council to insist that some form of international design contest is held to ensure that we get something suitable for such a prominent site, which can be viewed from the top of Calton Hill and coming up Leith Walk."

Edinburgh-based architect Benjamin Tindall, a favourite of Prince Charles, said: "This is a tremendous opportunity to right a terrible wrong. I don't think there is a single soul who likes this building."

Mr Tindall said any new designs for the site had to emulate what had been there in the past and called for a large residential element to be a key element of any new scheme.

But Allan Murray, another city architect who has won a string of awards for his schemes, like The Tun on Holyrood Road, said it would be a "mistake" for Edinburgh to try to recreate the original New Town squares.

"These were largely slum areas and it would be a mistake to fall into the trap of trying to restore this area to what it was like before.

"This whole complex has simply had its time, but the problem is that the shopping centre and the office block were designed to fit into each other. It's not easy to redevelop the site.

"We should be aiming to create something of European-class in Edinburgh."

Agents handling the sale say the site will be sold as a single entity.

Steve Spray, director of LaSalle Investment Management, which is acting on behalf of Coal Pension Properties Ltd (CPPL), said: "The St James has huge development potential and has always performed well with 300,000 shoppers a week at peak times like Christmas.

"Most of the retailers there have long leases so it's likely that it'll remain a shopping centre.

"It's likely to be positive for retail in Edinburgh as a major new developer will come into the city and possibly redevelop the city centre."

Fiona Morton a spokesman from Rydans Property Solutions said: "The building would be very marketable it would be very attractive to investors. The investors market has been very strong and I think the St James Centre would appeal to UK, Irish and International buyers."

Doesn't exactly sound like the death knell to me.

[The Boy David]

Getting rid of that festering piece of shite is an absolute must.

It's worse than most of the architectural turd that lines Princess Street.

I'm more than delighted that they have got their act together about addressing so many of Edinburgh's Carbuncle issues. So delighted in fact that I will competely ignore my every instinct that nothing much will really be done with all of the stuff earmarked for demolishion/refurbishment.

[gweilo]

Herald's picked up Prospect's story now. Looks like Edinburgh's elite are getting all excited or 'energised' about it. I thought the talks about bringing this collection to Scotland was based on the idea of housing it in both Edinburgh and Glasgow

http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/50091.html

[gothicform]

how about this chaps, anyone know any more? -

[crusty_bint]

With Glasgow's reputation for spontaneously combusting warehouses it's no wonder they don't want our grubby weegie mitts on any part of the collection!

I think that's a bit of wishful thinking Gothic... Edinburgh doesn't have the balls!

[gothicform]

lol... thats the design for it though its a real proposal i understand.

[Vladimir V L]

Wont happen, just like Elphinstone and Dalmarnock

[Jimbob]

We have just as much chance of building a skyscraper as you guys do.
If we dont get ours, your not gettin yours either

[gothicform]

why wont it happen guys?

[Vladimir V L]

Because we think we dont deserve one, thats why...

[The Boy David]

Looks spectacular - even leagues of anything proposed here in Glasgow.

If one skyscraper is to be built in Edinburgh it's this one.

Stunning.


Problem is Gothic - if you don't know anything about it, and we don't know anything either, then it's not exactly looking promising, is it? Especially when the news about it broke over a year ago...

I think it will be built. But I'm worried that something this big has gone relatively un-noticed for so long now.

[gothicform]

i wouldnt be worried david. i remember a proposal called riverside south, perhaps youre familiar with it. anyway i broke the news about it in 2001 and it took another 2 years before they even publically announced it existed. delays of years are common in large projects. does anyone have ay more info on it though, this is the first image ive seen of it and it'd be cool to write about.

[Russell1]

Couldnt be arsed makin a new thread for a few pics so thought id bung them in here







*note the cheeseball in the kilt who stood motionless throughout gazing over the city trying to look all patriotic and mysterious infront of the tourists.

[Jimbob]

ohh...looks liveable if you look it from that angel.
our skyline is more beautiful than glasgows though.
and the cheeseball, theres plenty of them walkin aroun edinburgh in their kilts.
and wtf is a cheeseball.