Odeon must reel in buyer to stop the rot

Published on Thursday 16 December 2010 11:04

Once it was the jewel of the Southside, welcoming film stars and royalty and entertaining thousands of cinema-goers every week.

&#149 The Odeon is suffering from pigeon infestation

Now, conservation groups have raised concerns that the former Odeon on Clerk Street is suffering from pigeon infestation, damp and dry rot.

The Cinema Theatre Association (CTA) has written to the city council, Historic Scotland and building owners Duddingston House Properties (DHP) raising concerns that the Grade B-listed art deco building has been allowed to fall into a state of disrepair. Historic Scotland says it shares these concerns.

The building, which has been empty for seven years, is currently for sale by DHP after its own plans to turn it into a hotel were shelved by a Scottish Government reporter, who said it should be remarketed in the hope of finding plans that would preserve more of its original features. The owners say they are keen to see the building brought back into use, and that they have done their best to maintain it.

Members of the CTA, which campaigns for the protection of traditional cinema buildings, have visited the site several times since it closed in 2003, and caseworker Gordon Barr said that on their most recent visit, several areas of concern were found.

He wrote that areas of damp, which had been pointed out in 2007, appeared to have been left untreated and were "sopping wet and increasingly damaged", with mould and rust coming from ceiling beams. He said water was running down the wall into a stairway, and that it was "increasingly urgent" that leaks were dealt with.

Dr Barr also said hatches and doors had been left open, raising concerns over security and allowing birds to enter. He wrote: "The interior spaces of the roof void and former projection areas, in particular, are now lousy with pigeon faeces, the decaying remains of dead birds, a number of nests and pigeon eggs . . . and generally absolutely stinking and covered with guano."

He also said: "It's very disappointing, just a couple of years ago everything was pretty much intact."

&#149 Pigeon eggs in the cafe area

A spokeswoman for Historic Scotland said: "We are aware of the current condition of the building and have responded to the letter from CTA noting that we share their concern. The current marketing of the property finishes on January 5 and we hope for progress around this time. "

A spokeswoman for the city council said it was awaiting the outcome of the marketing process.

Bruce Hare, director of DHP, said: "When that letter came in we did send somebody round to deal with the items that were pointed out. There has been a window open in the past and we dealt with it straight away. It's in our interest to make sure everything is kept wind and watertight and locked fast."