The council’s £1.3 billion plans for Granton Waterfront will take another step forward in the next few weeks.
Councillors will be presented with the financial details they need to know at a meeting next week, but the project will have to be signed off by all councillors when they meet next month.
The project includes housing, a primary school, shops and commercial spaces all within yards of good transport links meaning that car ownership in the area will be low. Only a quarter of the homes will have car parking spaces since the links for active travel and public transport will be central to the whole scheme.
All councillors will be asked to give the go ahead for work on the ground to begin in early 2026 when they meet on 18 December. This will then allow the council to engage contractors who will then spend two years on decontaminating the land first.
Funding
Phase 1 of the project has been made possible through the Council securing funding from The Scottish Government – capital grant funding from its Housing Infrastructure Fund as part of its commitment through the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal, along with revenue funding through an innovative Place Based Accelerator grant. This was formulated with the support of Scottish Futures Trust.
The Place Based Accelerator grant is an innovative funding model that will allow the Council to take forward the development in return for achieving outcomes for the people in the north of Edinburgh including achieving targets related to improvements to health and wellbeing, educational attainment and local employment opportunities.
Cruden will then start building new homes on parts of the 50 hectare site which the council owns, having purchased it in 2018 from National Grid. It is now some five years since the council’s planners approved the outline of the development framework, and planning approval was granted just last November.
New homes
The council will construct 847 new homes in the next seven years along with a new school and other community buildings. There will be commercial buildings – places to work – and public realm all created in the area.
There are already 75 new homes – all net zero carbon ready affordable homes – at Granton Station View beside the renovated station, 444 similar houses underway at Wester Villages and 143 affordable homes to be built on the site of the former Silverlea Nursing Home.
Granton Station has become a creative hub, The Pitt is housed in a former industrial building on the waterfront, and the Granton Gasholder has been restored with a new park at its base.
The site in North Edinburgh is a brownfield site recognised as an area which has high levels of social economic inequality.
The Council Leader, Jane Meagher said she wants to see the area not as a dormitory but somewhere that people will want to live and work.
The Edinburgh Waterfront – a larger area – is also one of the priorities in The Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal which is another source of funding.
Deputy First Minister
Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes said:”For people living in Granton and north Edinburgh, this investment means real improvements to daily life. Families will have access to affordable, energy-efficient homes that are cheaper to heat. Young people will get construction training and local job opportunities. Parents will see new safe walking and cycling routes to schools and shops and green spaces where their children can play.
“Our support for this project is directly tied to delivering outcomes that matter to local people—improving health and wellbeing, creating jobs that go to local residents first and supporting community organisations.”
Neil Rutherford, Senior Associate Director at the Scottish Futures Trust, said: “This innovative outcomes-based Place Accelerator, backed by Scottish Government and partners, is unlocking new opportunities for people in north Edinburgh and delivering benefits for the wider city. We believe the Place Accelerator shows how smart funding and collaboration can turn ambition into action, helping create healthier, fairer, and more prosperous communities.”
Council Leader
Council Leader Jane Meagher said: “The £1.3nbillion regeneration of Edinburgh’s coastline is hugely significant for our capital city. It is the largest public sector led project of its kind in Scotland. Over the next 10 to 15 years, it will continue to set the standard for sustainable economic growth in Edinburgh.
“We’re using the largest brownfield site we own to deliver the first phase of this project, with our development partner Cruden Homes. We will be delivering new and affordable, energy efficient ‘net zero ready’ homes which will provide our residents with fairly priced energy bills. The retail and leisure units we will deliver will provide an opportunity for local people to enjoy recreation and access employment. We’ll also be improving public transport and cycling and walking paths as well as education services. Our aim is to help to reduce child poverty as well as address the nature and climate emergencies we face locally and globally.
“Our investment in this major project for the Capital further reinforces our approach across the city to achieve low carbon affordable living for as many of our residents as possible. Our aim is to make Edinburgh more inclusive and well connected to support prosperity and wellbeing for those in the Granton Waterfront area and across the city region.”
Cruden Homes
Fraser Lynes, Managing Director of Cruden Homes, said: “We’re proud to be playing a leading role in delivering this landmark regeneration of Edinburgh’s coastline. Granton Waterfront is a bold and innovative project that will create a distinctive new coastal neighbourhood with a real sense of place, centred around much-needed, high-quality, energy-efficient homes and sustainable infrastructure. Working in partnership with the City of Edinburgh Council, we’re not only building net zero ready homes but also creating valuable community benefits, from local employment and apprenticeships to investment in skills and supply chains. This next phase marks an exciting milestone in shaping a more inclusive, sustainable and connected future for the Capital.”
