Listed building consent is sought by our old friends the Cameron Guest House (CGH) for the reorganisation of lower-basement-level flats at Category A-listed 34–6 York Place, changes to their roofs, and creation of an external seating area behind No. 34 – far from the possible thrum, shussh and sizzle of passing trams.
The plans (Ref. 12/01625/LBC ) resemble to the untrained eye a warren of not lavishly appointed subterranean staff sleeping quarters and variously-sized airless function rooms, with a new rooftop function room protected from the outside world and vice versa by acoustic insulation.
No doubt they will all prove to be lovely, airy, spacious theatres of interplaying sunbeams in reality (see artist's impression top-right).
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[img_assist|nid=3044|title=|desc=|link=node|align=right|width=200|height=163]McEwan Frazer's controversially consented application to replace two semi-detached dwellings with a five-and-a-half storey flatted development at the corner of East Claremont and West Annandale Streets has been withdrawn (Ref. 04/03812/FUL).
Locals can now stop arguing about how to spell Frazer.
Another developer will surely revisit this site when economic conditions improve.
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Rettie & Co. Ltd – the New Town-based property letting and management service beloved by neighbours of student flats across the city – has applied for permission to convert 12a Howe Street from retail to office (Class 2) use (Ref. 12/01654/FUL).
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[img_assist|nid=3043|title=|desc=|link=node|align=right|width=200|height=155]The Edinburgh Motor Company (EMC) seeks retrospective permission to change the use of 21 McDonald Place from light industrial/storage and distribution (Classes 4 and 6) to second-hand car dealers (Ref. 12/01679/FUL).
In its scrupulously prepared Full Planning Statement, EMC is keen to distinguish itself from the grubby sale or servicing of alternative modes of transport which figured in an earlier failed application (Ref. 10/02198/FUL; Breaking news, 19.10.10).
'Since acquiring the site, EMC has invested significantly within the regeneration of the building, including substantial building maintenance and security works, improvements to the McDonald Place façade and new signage to inform visitors to the business premises of the neighbouring residential properties, to ensure that their existing levels of privacy and amenity are not detrimentally affected.'
Second-hand car salesman, it appears, even when operating without consent, are model neighbours who do everything in their power to avoid causing a nuisance, even travelling to and from work by bicycle or public transport.
Fortunately for nearby residents, EMC report that hardly anyone ever visits the premises.
We searched for a paragraph describing how second-hand cars float into the premises on a cloud and depart suspended from the beak of a stork, but failed to find it.
In short, the EMC appears to believe the streets of Broughton are paved with eggshells and has gone to extraordinary lengths to prove that it will not break them. In the absence of widespread objections to their operation, Spurtle wishes them well.