Back scheme or Assembly Rooms may go for good

City council officials announced they want to appoint the team behind the 46 million National Museums refit to carry out the 9.3m upgrade of the George Street venue.

Councillors will be asked next week to approve the appointment of construction giant Balfour Beatty to carry out the work, which will see the crumbling Georgian building closed for 18 months from Monday.

However, campaigners fighting to block the proposals - which will see three ground floor rooms turned into two shops and a restaurant - are set to launch a last-ditch attempt to block the development. Assembly Theatre, which runs the Fringe venue in the Assembly Rooms every summer, is due to call for councillors to oppose the plans at next week's full council meeting. It is instead calling for a reduced 4.6m of work that does not include the creation of shops and a restaurant.

However, Lindsay Robertson, the city council's arts development manager, said: "The whole point to this is to refurbish the Assembly Rooms to protect it for the next century. This is an A-listed building that is unique in Edinburgh and UK terms.

"We have a duty to protect that and retain it for its original purpose.

"If we do not do the scale of work we propose, anything less is a sticking plaster. It holds it back in the way it is held back now. The building is crying out for improvement in infrastructure, and we could not continue to support the amount of activity we currently do without this work."

She added: "Without this, we are delaying the inevitable. It is not a valid building any more. The M&E (mechanical and electrical works) is at the end of its life, and we need to act to save the building for the city."

The building is used every summer to house Assembly Theatre's Fringe venue but is used throughout the rest of the year for a range of events, including weddings, corporate functions, craft fairs, and private events.Ms Robertson believes that the development will allow the venue, which has a 750-capacity music hall and 500-capacity ballroom, to attract new music, theatre and arts events that are open to the public, as well as more conference business.

The council's recent cultural venues study concluded that some UK producers and promoters that toured across the UK were not currently coming to Edinburgh - but would consider it following the Assembly Rooms refurbishment because of its prestige and central location.

Ms Robertson also said revenue brought in from the lease of the shops would help cover running and maintenance costs after redevelopment.

Celebrity chefs from London are among those known to be eyeing a move into the new restaurant, within the ground floor supper room and Edinburgh suite.

It will include a new entrance onto Rose Street.

Leading fashion chains, including Japanese retail giant Muji, have been linked with the two retail units being created in the Wildman room and Scott room on the ground floor.

Architect Tom Gaze, from LDV Architects, has identified a string of serious problems that need to be addressed in the project, including water leaks, split timber work, poor electrical wiring and structural issues.

Last year, the historic upstairs ballroom had to be closed after the ceiling dipped because of damp problems.

Mr Gaze said: "We've seen what happened to the ballroom. If these problems are not addressed, the music hall will get to that point as well."