Further verified visualisations required before townscape impacts can be robustly assessed
Further verified visualisations required before townscape impacts can be robustly assessed
The Cockburn Association welcomes continued investment in community sporting facilities and supports, in principle, the provision of covered padel tennis courts within the established Raeburn Place sports grounds.
However, the site occupies a sensitive location within the Inverleith Conservation Area and the applicant’s Planning Statement relies upon conclusions that the proposal preserves the character and appearance of the Conservation Area and does not adversely affect Key View N2b identified within the Edinburgh Skyline Study. While these conclusions may ultimately prove to be well founded, the Association does not consider that the application is currently supported by sufficient verified visual information to enable them to be independently assessed.
Given the importance of Edinburgh’s internationally recognised townscape, skyline and significant public views, the planning authority should be satisfied that it has adequate evidence before determining the application. In our view, the submission should be supplemented by a more comprehensive suite of verified visualisations and supporting townscape assessment illustrating the proposal from representative public viewpoints, including those identified within the Edinburgh Design Guidance.
Until that information has been provided, the Cockburn Association is unable to support the application and recommends that it should not be determined. We consider that further visual assessment is necessary to demonstrate that the proposal preserves the character and appearance of the Inverleith Conservation Area and safeguards the qualities of Edinburgh’s important skyline and public views.
Supports brownfield regeneration while seeking stronger architecture and public realm quality
Supports brownfield regeneration while seeking stronger architecture and public realm quality
The Cockburn Association welcomes the redevelopment of this long-standing brownfield site and considers that the proposal represents a significant improvement upon the existing condition of this prominent gateway location. The scheme demonstrates a coherent urban design strategy, responding positively to the street geometry and reinforcing the urban frontage along Willowbrae Road and Northfield Road. The use of durable materials, the integration of landscaping and sustainable drainage, and the provision of active travel infrastructure are all positive aspects of the proposal.
The Association particularly welcomes the applicant’s continued refinement of the scheme through the planning process and recognises that the design has evolved from earlier approved proposals.
However, the Association considers there remains scope for further design refinement. Given the strategic importance of this eastern gateway into Edinburgh, the architecture could provide a stronger civic presence through greater articulation of the principal corner and richer façade modelling. Similarly, opportunities exist to enhance the public realm through a more generous landscape setting, reduced visual dominance of surface parking where practicable, and measures to ensure the ground-floor commercial unit provides an active and enduring contribution to street life.
Subject to these observations, the Cockburn Association considers that the proposal makes a generally positive contribution to the townscape and raises no objection in principle to the application. It encourages the planning authority and applicant to continue refining the architectural detailing and public realm to ensure that the completed development fully realises the potential of this important gateway site.
Calls for stronger heritage justification before altering Category A listed building
Calls for stronger heritage justification before altering Category A listed building
The Cockburn Association notes that this application relates solely to Listed Building Consent and therefore comments only on the effect of the proposed works upon the special architectural and historic interest of this Category A listed building.
We recognise that securing viable ongoing uses for historic buildings can contribute positively to their long-term conservation. However, any alterations to a Category A listed building within Charlotte Square require particularly careful justification and should clearly demonstrate a conservation-led approach based upon minimum intervention and retention of historic fabric.
While the proposed internal alterations appear relatively modest, the application is not accompanied by a standalone Heritage Statement, or equivalent assessment, clearly identifying the significance of the affected historic fabric and demonstrating how the proposals have been informed by that understanding.
The Council should therefore be satisfied that sufficient information has been provided to demonstrate that:
Should this level of heritage assessment not already be contained within the submitted documentation, we consider that further conservation justification should be sought before Listed Building Consent is determined. Given the statutory duty to have special regard to preserving listed buildings, it is important that the planning authority is satisfied that the significance of the building has been properly understood and that the proposed works preserve its special architectural and historic interest.
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Edinburgh’s Festival streets should remain inclusive, accessible and liveable for everyone
Edinburgh’s Festival streets should remain inclusive, accessible and liveable for everyone
Office loss and neighbourhood balance raise concerns over proposed aparthotel conversion
Office loss and neighbourhood balance raise concerns over proposed aparthotel conversion
The Cockburn Association recognises that the reuse of existing buildings can represent a sustainable approach to development. However, while the adaptation of the building itself is welcomed in principle, we have significant concerns regarding the proposed change of use from offices to a 23-unit aparthotel.
Our principal concern is the cumulative effect of the continuing growth of visitor accommodation within the Southside. This part of Edinburgh already accommodates a substantial concentration of hotels, aparthotels, purpose-built student accommodation and other visitor-related uses. Although each application is determined on its own merits, planning decisions should also consider the cumulative impact of incremental change on the character and function of the area.
The Southside derives much of its vitality from its mix of residential, commercial, educational, cultural and employment uses. The continued loss of office accommodation risks weakening that balance and reducing the diversity of everyday activity that supports a successful neighbourhood.
The application should therefore provide robust evidence that continued employment use is no longer viable and explain why visitor accommodation represents the most appropriate long-term use of the building. In our view, the supporting information does not yet demonstrate that this important question has been adequately addressed.
The Association also considers that servicing, waste management and operational arrangements should be carefully assessed to ensure that the proposal does not adversely affect neighbouring occupiers or the surrounding public realm.
While we recognise the benefits of reusing the existing building, we consider that insufficient justification has been provided for the permanent loss of employment floorspace and that the cumulative implications for the Southside’s mixed-use character have not been adequately addressed.
For these reasons, the Cockburn Association objects to the application as submitted and requests that the Council seek further evidence on employment need, cumulative impact and neighbourhood balance before determining the proposal.
Cockburn objects because too many planning questions remain unanswered
Cockburn objects because too many planning questions remain unanswered
The Cockburn Association welcomes the principle of bringing Silvan House back into productive use and supports the reuse of existing buildings in preference to demolition. A hotel may be an appropriate use in this location, and the sensitive adaptation of a long-vacant building has the potential to make a positive contribution to this part of Corstorphine Road.
However, having reviewed the application and supporting documents, the Association objects to the proposal in its current form because it leaves too many material planning questions unanswered to demonstrate compliance with City Plan 2030.
In particular, the application does not adequately explain how the proposal accords with Policy Econ 2, which seeks mixed-use development, including housing where appropriate, on larger commercial sites. The proposal introduces a substantial single commercial use but provides no explanation as to why no residential element has been considered.
The supporting information is also insufficient in several key respects. The Transport Statement appears to assess the hotel bedrooms but gives limited consideration to traffic generated by the proposed restaurant, bar and events facilities, while servicing, deliveries, guest drop-off and operational management are addressed only at a high level. Given the scale of the development and its location on one of Edinburgh’s principal arterial routes, these matters require a more robust assessment.
The Association is also concerned that the application provides inadequate information on the potential effects on neighbouring residential amenity. Despite the introduction of evening uses, including a bar and events space adjacent to established housing, no acoustic assessment has been submitted and there is little consideration of operational noise, plant or servicing activity.
Similarly, the drainage strategy largely relies on existing infrastructure without demonstrating that opportunities for sustainable drainage have been fully explored, while confirmation of available sewer capacity from Scottish Water remains outstanding despite the projected increase in foul water discharge.
Taken individually, some of these matters might be capable of being resolved through additional information or revised proposals. Collectively, however, they mean that the application has not demonstrated that it complies with the Development Plan. Until these issues have been satisfactorily addressed, the Cockburn Association considers that the proposal cannot be properly assessed and therefore objects to the application as submitted.
