Plans to redevelop the former Scottish Widows headquarters on Dalkeith Road in Edinburgh have been unveiled.
The capital investment is expected to be in excess of £100m, with approximately 200 flats - including 35% affordable - proposed as part of plans to mix a reduced office space with residential areas.
The current office extends to more than 300,000 sq ft on the six acre site, which also includes a large multi-storey car park. The new office would have footprint of circa 200,000 sq ft.
The building was designed in the early 1970s and opened in July 1976, remaining under the ownership of Scottish Widows and serving as its headquarters, before the company moved to its present building on Morrison Street in 1995.
It was most recently occupied by Lloyds Banking Group until 2020 and, at its peak, housed 2,300 employees.
Often attributed to architect Sir Basil Spence, the building’s design and development was actually undertaken by Spence’s partner, John Hardie Glover and senior assistant, John Marnoch Legge.
Despite being Category A listed, the building no longer performs to modern occupational requirements, with the lowest possible Environmental Performance rating.
To resolve these issues, the new owner Schroders Capital has appointed a design team led by Corran Properties, an Edinburgh-based development management practice. Morgan Architects is developing a solution to bring the building up to modern standards, while also ensuring the wider site contributes positively to the surrounding neighbourhood.
To address challenges with the existing building and also respect the original design intent, there are proposals for selective demolition and adaptation to improve natural light and increase sustainability performance. To deliver these improvements, the office will undergo a full renovation, including conversion to an all-electric building that meets net zero carbon performance targets.
This would leave an office footprint of a more manageable size, while also opening up the site to allow the development of a new residential area.
Rebecca Gates, head of UK asset management at Schroders Capital's real estate team, commented: “We have challenged the design team to deliver an environmentally sustainable solution giving the building and its surrounding area a new lease of life and purpose.”
Nick Ball, the owner of Corran Properties, added: “From the outset, the priority has been to preserve and retain as much of the building’s fabric and history as possible, while respecting its Category A listed status and its position within the Southside Conservation Area.
“As custodians of the building, our client provided clear goals to ensure every possible option was explored to achieve this - the building is, however, from another era and with so many advances in environmental and sustainability technology, it is no longer viable as a modern, office environment.
“By reducing the size of the building’s footprint, we can retain and improve many of the building’s historical features, create a more manageable office building, while the new residential quarter will create a high-quality neighbourhood that will complement the surrounding area and provide much-needed new housing in a sustainable, urban location,” he added.
Over the coming months, the project team will be undertaking a public consultation exercise, presenting proposals to the local community and interested parties, prior to submitting applications for planning permission and listed building consent later in the summer.
The first public consultation event took place within the building on 31 May, with around 200 members of the community. This will be followed up by two online live chat events via the project website.
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