Developers eye Boroughmuir High School deal

Boroughmuir High School is expected to be snapped up by a luxury property developer after the sought-after site was put on the market by council chiefs.
The current Boroughmuir High School is in a prime residential area of the Capital and will be attractive to developers. Picture: Jon SavageThe current Boroughmuir High School is in a prime residential area of the Capital and will be attractive to developers. Picture: Jon Savage
The current Boroughmuir High School is in a prime residential area of the Capital and will be attractive to developers. Picture: Jon Savage

The B-listed Bruntsfield building and its grounds are being sold off amid plans to move the school’s 1140 pupils to a new site 500 metres away.

And it’s understood the 2.18-acre plot could fetch up to 
£15 million on the open market, with developers set to jump at the chance to bag a patch of land in one of the Capital’s most affluent areas.

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The main schoolhouse – built between 1911 and 1913 – offers 9600sq metres of space over three storeys, as well as a basement, mezzanine and attic levels.

Scott Brown, estate agency partner at Warners, said a residential development of the distinctive double-quadrangle building could be worth up to £30m once completed.

He said: “It’s a prime residential area within the centre of Edinburgh. This could be a fantastic residential development. It’s in one of the most popular parts of the city.

“The look and feel of the building is phenomenal and you could have a superb development opportunity there, with a sympathetic approach taken by the planner.

“It’s ideal for residential conversion, but it’s a huge project for a planner to take 
on.”

The council’s advertisement said the site offered “potential for both sympathetic alterations to the main schoolhouse and the development of new buildings within the existing playground.”

Work on Boroughmuir High School’s new £35m building on the grounds of the former Fountain Brewery started in November, with the project set to be completed in 2016.

The cutting-edge facility will boast the first rooftop football pitch in Scotland – as well as a multi-functional atrium and classrooms with quick access to collaborative “break-out” spaces.

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Business expert Graham Birse said the school’s old building and grounds would be highly sought-after.

He said: “It’s a prime site, slap-bang in the middle of the city centre and close to the Meadows. It’s a place where most of us would like to live.

“Residential use would be an obvious option. In principle, it could be a hotel – but I don’t think the council are going to zone it for that purpose.”

A council spokesman said: “The new Boroughmuir High School will be completed in 2016 and the existing school building is currently on the open market. We expect there will be a lot of interest in the property.”