Glass dome tops plan for Cowgate fire site

Published on Wednesday 16 August 2006 11:53

A GLASS dome is to be the centrepiece of a £40 million hotel and leisure complex set to dramatically transform the fire-hit Cowgate site.

The huge dome, on the corner of Chambers Street and South Bridge, would tower above the 140-room hotel in an area being earmarked to become a new cultural quarter of the city.

A new public venue - a gallery, Fringe venue, concert space or specialist cinema - is also to be built as part of the development.

Designed by award-winning Edinburgh architect Allan Murray, the structure has been inspired by the great domes of Robert Adam's original plans for South Bridge's Old College and Register House, on Princes Street.

The hotel will make up part of the proposed SoCo area planned by site owner Whiteburn Projects.

Mr Murray said: "This computer-generated image illustrates the new glass dome forming a new feature on the important corner of Chambers Street and South Bridge.

"This is not only a contemporary response to the French Mansard roof that was demolished on the same building by the 1920s, but it is also inspired by the great domes of Robert Adam's original design for the Old College and Register House in Edinburgh.

"It will become one of the most dramatic hotel spaces in the city and a wonderful addition to the Old Town."

Apartments, an art gallery, shops, restaurants and bars are also to be created on the 12,000 square metre site, which has been left derelict a massive fire ripped through the Old Town in December 2002, destroying several buildings and causing millions of pounds worth of damage.

Whiteburn is currently in talks with a number of hotel operators to decide who will occupy the building. It is hoped the development could be completed in three years time, if approved by city planners later this year.

The plans include the creation of new through routes to link Chambers Street and South Bridge to the Cowgate, while two new squares are planned at the heart of the development.

John Shepherd, chief executive of Whiteburn, said: "We look forward to the challenge of putting back a very significant building.

"It was certainly the most complex transaction we've ever undertaken, involving the separation of the ownerships between the destroyed and remaining parts of the tenement. I'm grateful to the joint owners for their patience whilst our respective legal teams delved into the title complexities."

He added: "It's a site that has generated enormous public interest since the sad demise of the former buildings. We'll leave no stone unturned in ensuring we've reached the right solution."

Whiteburn last month became the official owner of the site following 18 months of negotiations with the owners of businesses which had previously occupied the land.

The area was previously home to a host of retail outlets, offices, studio spaces, pubs and venues, including the Gilded Balloon comedy venue, Bridge Jazz Bar, La Belle Angele nightclub, Leisureland amusement arcade and the University of Edinburgh's School of Informatics.

Just one owner, Hafid Mahboubi, has refused to sell up and he is planning to re-open his former La Belle Angele nightclub on the site.