Silvan House

Cockburn Response

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.