Caltongate campaign task force

Published on Saturday 4 April 2009 01:10

CAMPAIGNERS are to set up a task force in an attempt to help shape the future of the site of a doomed development in Edinburgh's Old Town.

A development trust is hoped to be created within weeks to try to influence plans for the site of the Caltongate development, which was halted last month when its owners, Mountgrange, went into administration. Plans for a five-star hotel and conference centre, 200 homes, office blocks and a public square are in serious doubt. It is expected to be months before administrators decide what to do with the assets of Mountgrange.

Backers of the initiative hope to bring forward their own plans for the area, ensure empty buildings are brought back into use and encourage the landscaping of a huge gap site. Sally Richardson, spokeswoman for the Save Our Old Town campaign, said: "Ideally, we'd like to take forward our own plans, particularly for buildings that are lying empty."

Writing in today's Scotsman, architect James Simpson states: "Very few who care for the history, the architecture, the image and the long-term health of Edinburgh could fail to welcome the collapse of Mountgrange."