Building Briefs - March 8th

• Edinburgh industrial estate sold in £8.5m deal

The site was sold by Telereal Trillium, the property company, to an undisclosed buyer.

Knight Frank acted for the vendor on the transaction, which reflected a net initial yield of around 5.5%.

Located around 2.5 miles to the west of Edinburgh city centre, Stenhouse Mill Wynd consists of two terraces of modern industrial units totalling 63,182 sq. ft. of space.

The site is home to a range of tenants, including Travis Perkins, the building materials retailer; electrical supplies distributor Rexel; and Chubb, the insurer.

• Pat Munro awarded Inshes Park path contract

The construction of a new all-abilities path for Phase 3 of Inshes Park is due to start on site late March/early April.

The £358k contract has been awarded to Pat Munro Ltd and will see the construction of a surfaced footpath linking the pedestrian bridge on Inshes Road with Milton of Leys. The path forms the final link to the earlier phases of footpath provision and will provide an attractive and more protected off-road route for both cyclists and pedestrians.

The new path will meander through 12.7ha of parkland consisting of natural birch woodland and open rough grassland providing a more natural and informal park for users to enjoy. The earlier phases, north of Inshes Road, have been completed as part of a phased programme since 2012 and have become an important recreational asset for the area.

Inshes Park has been funded through developer contributions collected over the past number of years from adjacent housing developments. Sustrans Scotland has provided a £277k grant towards the current phase of the project as part of its  ‘Places for Everyone Programme’. 

While construction work takes place there will be no public access to the site, located between Inshes Road and Elmwood Avenue.  This is for the safety of both the public and the construction workers.  Signs will be erected once work on site begins and these will highlight the alternative routes available.

A separate planting and landscaping contract for Phase 2 or the mid-section of the park will follow as developer contributions from adjacent housing developments accrue in the future. 

• Two new early learning and childcare centres open in Angus 

As part of Angus Council’s commitment to offer up to 1140 hours of funded early learning and childcare (ELC) each year, two new early learning and childcare centres, one in Forfar and the other in Carnoustie have opened their doors to their first intake of children.

The new, purpose-built centres are part of the council’s commitment to expand ELC and were built via Scottish Government funding.

The Taylor Street centre in Forfar has accommodation for up to 155 children, while the Carnoustie centre at Pitskelly Park for up to 205 children. Both centres boast a variety of spaces include large playrooms; smaller breakout rooms; sensory rooms; changing places; and staff accommodation for children attending both the Angus Council operated facilities and separate playgroups. An emphasis has been placed on outdoor space, creating diverse safe play areas which will both engage and educate. In the entrance area of the Carnoustie centre, when children leave their respective adults they can travel downstairs by the main staircase or a chute.

Kevin Dickson, regional managing director, Robertson Construction Tayside, said: “Angus Council’s commitment to providing 1140 hours of funded early learning and childcare is one step closer with the delivery of these new facilities.  These first-class centres that have been provided will further enhance the learning experience for these children before they commence their primary school education.  We are delighted to have delivered these facilities, and to be Angus Council and hub East Central Scotland’s construction delivery partner.”

Gary Bushnell, Chief Executive, hub East Central Scotland, added: “We are proud to have delivered two high quality learning facilities for Angus Council that have such an important place within the communities. Everyone on the project team worked incredibly hard to overcome the challenges of COVID 19 and deliver the centre to the highest standards.”

• Highland £1.5m tourism investment gets green light

A £1.5 million visitor management investment strategy has been agreed as part of the Highland Council’s collaborative budget proposals.

Funding for projects in the visitor management strategy will now get the green light to begin work.

The projects include £280,000 investment in roads such as improving passing places, lay-bys, road signs and verges; over £200,000 investment in parking management at tourism hot spot car parks; ten new seasonal access ranger posts (£300,000) focusing on visitor management issues; £60,000 investment in public toilets and £180,000 increase in waste management service, frequency and capacity to help combat littering; £200,000 for motor homes campsite and waste servicing; £60,000 for park and ride public transport schemes to 3 sites on Skye; and £175,000 to work with Cairngorms National Park Authority visitor management improvements in Aviemore – Glenmore corridor area.

• Generous donation from Dandara helps hospital staff take a break

The Midlothian Community Hospital in Dalkeith has received a generous donation of £3000 from housebuilder Dandara.

These funds will be used to help revamp the staff wellbeing room and café, to encourage staff to take a break away from their wards during their shift.

Midlothian Community Hospital will now be able to purchase comfortable seating; including leather massage chairs, for their wellbeing room and café, making them welcoming spaces where staff are more likely to stay and take their well-earned breaks. Currently, staff often take breaks in small offices on their wards, meaning they are easily interrupted and often cut their breaks short.

Dandara, which is building a range of new homes in close proximity to the hospital, including at Eskbank Gardens in Dalkeith, Ashgrove in Straiton and in Shawfair, was pleased to make the donation to help support the wellbeing of the hardworking staff at the hospital with something that will benefit them both now and in the future as they continue to deal with the lasting impact of coronavirus.

• Work complete on new electric vehicle charging hub in Forfar

A new electric vehicle charging hub for residents and visitors to the area has been completed at Orchardbank in Forfar.

The ‘Angus on the Go’ Project has seen the development of a charging hub comprising of a mix of charging types. The hub has four rapid chargers which allow 80% charging within 30 minutes, three fast chargers charging within a two to three-hour period and two slow chargers that will fully charge within seven hours. It’s in a prime location at Orchardbank in Forfar between Dundee and Aberdeen, less than two minutes from the Forfar/Glamis junction of the A90 dual carriageway.

The project was awarded funding as part of the Low Carbon Travel and Transport Challenge Fund established by Transport Scotland from funds awarded under European Regional Development Fund 2014- 2020 programme and Transport Scotland funding, where relevant, to enable everyday functional journeys to be taken by walking, cycling and public transport and to support an increased proportion on ultra-low emission vehicles on Scotland’s roads.

This project links to Angus Council’s Mercury Programme’s low carbon agenda. The purpose of the Mercury Programme is to increase productivity through clean growth, protecting places for future generations to live, work and visit.

• Shepherd named overall Scottish winner in deals competition for second year in a row

Shepherd Chartered Surveyors has secured the top spot in Scotland for the second year in succession in the much-coveted EG Deals Competition of the UK’s most active agents.

In addition to being named overall winner in Scotland, the firm finished top in retail, highlighting the sector’s enduring importance despite its challenges, as well as topping the rankings in the investments and leisure and hotels categories.

While 2020 presented unprecedented challenges for the commercial property sector, Shepherd grasped the opportunity to respond to emerging trends within the sector with the introduction of innovative enhancements to its commercial property service offering that enabled the firm to continue to transact a healthy volume of deals.

And the introduction of free video tours of commercial properties throughout Scotland marked the latest stage in the continuous evolution of the range of services the firm offers to the commercial property marketplace.

• Young director named most promising individual for his work on pioneering solar energy systems

A Forres man has been named as the most promising individual in the North of Scotland renewable energy sector.

This is despite the fact, or perhaps even because of it, he is the youngest director on the board at a trailblazing solar energy company.

Josh King, 32, picked up the award at the Highlands and Islands Renewable Energy Awards, recently held online.

The awards celebrate the best in green energy with contenders from large multi-national companies vying for the trophies.

Josh, who is operations director at AES Solar in the Moray town, said: “It is incredibly rewarding being able to wake up every morning and turning my passion for engineering and solar into a career that inspires me every day. After a challenging year for all, this recognition is incredibly special, and I would like to thank all the team at AES Solar for their continued support and encouragement.

“It is an honour to have been awarded Most Promising Individual at the Highlands and Islands Renewable Energy Awards. I was in excellent company, joined by like-minded individuals and companies all championing renewables within the Highlands and Islands.”

• New scheme to increase 4G and 5G technology connectivity

Community access to 4G and 5G mobile connectivity is to be accelerated with a new “game-changing” initiative to identify public buildings where masts can be installed, the Scottish Government has said.

A new toolkit by the Infralink programme will help identify sites on public buildings for masts and antennae - easing the process of reaching agreements to install them. 

The toolkit aims to break down previous barriers to the rollout of 4G and 5G infrastructure, and is expected to lead to significantly faster deployment and increased investment in digital technology. It means Scotland will be the first part of the UK to have national pricing guidance for telecoms.

The new approach will apply to potential sites on land, building and streets, as well as 4G and 5G technology across the country.

The programme is led the Scottish Futures Trust and is funded by The Scotland 5G Centre.

A connectivity ‘marketplace’ will also launch later this year allowing the public sector and other land and property owners to break down previous legal obstacles and ease the process of striking commercial agreements.