Planning permission has been granted for a major new development of 3,000 homes on the old (and little-used) north-south runway at Edinburgh Airport.
Crosswinds Developments will now proceed to design the finer details of the new Elements Edinburgh which will have a mixture of one, two, and three-bedroom flats and townhouses, aimed at “inter-generational living”. There is also a hotel and 500,000 square feet of commercial space included in the proposal for a development where vehicles will be excluded from some of the streets. This will be a 20-minute neighbourhood promoting active travel with more than 9 km of walking and cycling routes, including a walking route from home into the nearby airport.
The decision by the council’s planning committee follows the recent approval of the adjacent ‘West Town’ development, which is expected to deliver 7,000 homes on a neighbouring site. Councillors complimented the application for outline permission which “ticked all the boxes”. The development will support 4,500 jobs, and is expected to transform a 29-hectare disused brownfield site, providing high-quality, affordable and energy-efficient homes. The site also provides crucial infrastructure, including a new primary school.
The approval of Elements under the newly adopted City Plan 2030 is regarded by the developers as a milestone moment. They believe that the site’s key position unlocks the west of the city, allowing for more housing and infrastructure projects in future.
John Watson, chief executive of Crosswind Developments, said: “After many years working with the local government and our neighbours, this approval marks a critical moment for West Edinburgh, and the city more widely, allowing us all to take the next step towards delivering new homes the city so desperately needs.
“The Elements site is central to the wider vision for West Edinburgh. Aside from delivering 3,000 new homes, the site will also provide key transport links, green space and a primary school which will help ensure these major housing developments also become a thriving community.
“Crosswind and other developers have been working for many years to get to this stage and it is essential that we continue to work in collaboration with each other – and a wide range of other private and public stakeholders – to deliver a decade and more of exciting development in the west of Edinburgh. Today’s decision marks the beginning of a new chapter which will see plans for the Elements site become a reality, transforming Edinburgh and creating new homes for its people.
“It’s at times like these when we can appreciate that we have supportive, world-class infrastructure investors backing us and to understand that their patience and dedication has been essential in allowing us to get to this stage. Without the right inward investors supporting Scotland, projects of this scale cannot move forward.”
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
