Here is the agenda for the meeting and it includes some meaty topics, not the least of which is the Royal Highland Centre and also Cairntows Park, Craigmillar which we told you about last week and which has sparked a Facebook and Twitter campaign.
Cairntows Park is to be discussed by the committee in advance of a formal planning application being submitted by New City Vision, the developers who want to put up flats on the park which has been the focal green area since before the Second World War. The proposed development will include residential and commercial buildings as well as open space. The Edinburgh City Local Plan identified the park as “open space”. Part of the process is to consult the community, and it is obvious from the report among the council papers that the exact nature of that consultation is not yet known, but will involve the Craigmillar Community Council and the Craigmillar Regeneration Forum. Another important point to be considered is the impact on road safety and public transport, which have been highlighted by campaigners as one of the main objections.
The Royal Highland Centre is planning some renovation or replacement of the Macrobert Centre which lies in the centre of the large exhibition area. The actual square footage of the buildings on the large site is to be increased without extending the actual footprint simply by building upwards, but there are many more amenities planned in the form of hotels and bars. The importance of the site lies in its proximity to the airport.
Many other items of note on the agenda most of which are recommended for approval, except for the application at 29 Polwarth Terrace for an application to revoke the condition in an earlier decision to demolish a bungalow. This means that the owner of the site will have to demolish the 1980s bungalow before redeveloping the Victorian villa into 11 flats.
