Building Briefs – September 7th

Aberdeenshire Council has given the green light to plans for 150 homes on the outskirts of Cruden Bay and awarded planning permission in principle for 73 homes at Aden Park Estate in Mintlaw.

Councillors on the Buchan Area Committee agreed with the recommendations of council planners this week by approving the Cruden Bay plans with provision being made for affordable housing at the site just west of the village.

Stephen Archer, the authority’s director of infrastructure services, argued the development, to be delivered by Claymore Homes Ltd, would be “appropriate” for the area.

He added up to 50 affordable homes could be created.

Planning permission in principle was also approved for Castlehill Housing Association’s proposals for 73 homes at Aden Park Estate in Mintlaw.

Councillors had been recommended to support the proposals, despite the local development plan only proposing the site be used for almost half the number of homes.

Five year housing strategy agreed for the Scottish Borders

Scottish Borders Council’s executive committee has agreed a new five-year Local Housing Strategy which sets out the council and partners’ approach to delivering high quality housing and services to meet local needs.

The strategy focuses on four key priorities:

An annual target of 348 new homes, including 128 affordable homes, has been set for the next five year period.

Old Road in Balmedie to close for AWPR works

Old Road in Balmedie is expected to close for around eight weeks during the weekend of Friday 8 September, as part of the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route/Balmedie to Tipperty (AWPR/B-T) project.

The road will close between Keir Heights and Eigie Road to enable the contractor to connect Old Road to the new realigned Eigie Road which will provide access to the A90 trunk road via the new Balmedie Junction.

The diversion, using Eigie Road and North Beach Road, will be sign-posted. A 20mph speed restriction will be in place between Forsyth Road and Eigie Crescent for safety reasons.

In addition to this closure, the existing A90 Junction providing direct access with the Blackdog Industrial Estate will close permanently to traffic during week commencing Monday 18 September.

Temporary access to the industrial estate will be provided via a new temporary junction on the A90 at the entrance to Blackdog Rifle Range. Permanent access to the industrial estate will be available via the new Blackdog Junction once it opens to traffic.

Council welcomes new tenants in Kennoway and Glenrothes

Fife Council’s Affordable Housing programme has delivered a further 24 homes at Langside Crescent in Kennoway.

Consisting of a mix of houses, flats, bungalows and some larger properties, the development is built on the site of the old Kennoway Primary school. The replacement school has been built further up the hill.

During the construction of the homes, housing officers and apprentices visited the school explaining to the children what was happening.

Councillor Judy Hamilton, convener of the community and housing services committee, and Fife Council’s convener of housing, John Flaherty, have also welcomed new tenants Mr and Mrs Hay to their new home at Roxburgh Road in Glenrothes.

The site comprises 17 properties ranging from one-bedroomed flats to five-bedroom two storey homes.

All of these properties offer high levels of insulation with low running costs.

Both projects are part of the council’s wider affordable housing programme to increase the number of affordable homes for rent across Fife.

Work continues on £120m waste water upgrade project

Scottish Water is continuing work on a £120 million water infrastructure upgrade project for 200,000 people in much of Ayrshire and parts of East Renfrewshire.

Caledonia Water Alliance (CWA), a joint venture between Morrison Utility Services and Aecom, is delivering the second phase of the improvement scheme to install around 13 miles of new water mains from the Amlaird Water Treatment Works in the Fenwick/Waterside area to Highlees Pumping Station near Dundonald in South Ayrshire.

Work is now underway to install an 80 metre-long, 1,500mm diameter concrete tunnel to house a 900mm diameter welded steel water pipe about 8.5 metres beneath the A76, east of the Bellfield interchange near Hurlford.

The CWA is using a Tunnel Boring Machine to carry out the work, which is expected to be completed in early October.

Broughty Ferry station platform upgrade rescheduled for January 2018

Work on a platform improvement project at Broughty Ferry station in Dundee has been rescheduled to start in January.

The project was originally meant to begin this month, however it has been pushed back to allow businesses an undisrupted Christmas shopping period. Completion is now scheduled for May 2018.

The scheme, which will be carried out by Carillion, forms one of 10 being delivered across the Highland and East Coast main lines in Scotland as part of a Department for Transport-funded upgrade to enable the introduction of new train fleets.

The development involves raising and rebuilding a 90-metre section of platform one to improve the stepping distance from trains calling at the station.

Work to begin on new St Andrews children’s play area

Construction work will soon start on a new children’s play and sensory garden in Kinburn Park in the centre of St Andrews.

The play area has been designed around an existing landscape of mature trees and shrubbery with castle themed equipment to reflect the nearby Kinburn Museum.

A beech hedge maze will be the central feature to the design and will incorporate feature panels for sensory play. Sensory style planting will also be provided.

Funding for the project has been provided by Fife Council, Fife Environment Trust, St Andrews Community Trust, Kinburn (St Andrews) Charitable Trust, St Andrews Common Good and The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews.

Scottish projects named as winners in UK-wide competition

Girlguiding Dunbartonshire and Montrose Playhouse have been named as a regional winners in the Jewson Building Better Communities competition 2017, with the projects scooping £5,000 and £10,000 worth of materials respectively.

Girlguiding Dunbartonshire is a volunteer-led charity supporting almost 3,400 girls and young women across the region.

Thanks to the Jewson Building Better Communities prize money, the charity can now upgrade the Outdoor Activity Centre at its Catterburn site in Croftamie, and give even more girls of all ages an opportunity to get involved with Girlguiding Dunbartonshire.

Montrose Playhouse will use the prize to help transform a former swimming pool into a state-of-the-art cinema and art centre for the local community’s use and benefit.

Engineering consultancy plans to regain title at Bank of Scotland Great Scottish Run

Runners at engineering and management consultancy Mott MacDonald, winners of last year’s Bank of Scotland Great Scottish Run Business Challenge in the large business category, are throwing down the gauntlet to other businesses in Scotland to take them on in the race this year.

Electrical CAD designer Steven Prentice, software systems project manager Fiona Greig, and chartered civil engineer Dimitrios Sotiriou met for a training session at Glasgow Green, where they will cross the finish line on Sunday 1 October.

Nearly 40 staff from the firm will compete in the half marathon and 10k events in an attempt to secure victory at Scotland’s largest mass participation sporting event for the second year running.

For more information about entering the Bank of Scotland Great Scottish Run Business Challenge, visit www.greatscottishrun.com.

SCN editor joins the world’s largest sleep-out

Scottish Construction Now’s very own editor Kieran Findlay is sleeping out to raise money for Social Bite’s mission to help eradicate homelessness in Scotland within five years.

Launched last month by Social Bite co-founder Josh Littlejohn MBE, Sleep in the Park will see 9,000 people to sleep rough in West Princes Street Gardens on December 9 with a live concert with rare acoustic performances from A-list stars who will be ‘busking’ for the audience.

A comprehensive study from Heriot Watt University entitled ‘Eradicating Core Homelessness in Scotland’ has been commissioned by Social Bite to provide a fully-researched framework for the investment of the money raised from the event. The report will be published in September.

The £4 million hoped to be raised by the event is expected to be spent on housing solutions, a nationwide employment program, addiction facilities, and outreach teams.

Kieran said: “Although I have no direct experience of homelessness myself, as editor of Scottish Housing News I write about it on a daily basis and understand that an integrated approach which addresses social inequalities and goes beyond housing is needed to tackle and prevent homelessness for good.

“That is why I believe in Social Bite’s plan to bring the public and private sector together with homelessness charities and the Scottish Government to create a framework for tackling rough sleeping which includes housing solutions, employment programmes and addiction rehabilitation.

“It is also why I am willing to brave a Scottish winter night outdoors to raise money for this cause and why you should donate what you can to help me do it.

“So if you would like to donate to this great cause, or just like the thought of me sleeping outside for a night in December, please give what you can.”

You can donate to Kieran’s fundraising page here and find out more about Sleep in the Park here.