A huge regeneration of an Edinburgh area is set to reach a "major milestone" this week, Edinburgh Council has revealed.
Plans for the regeneration of a major brownfield site in Fountainbridge, which was bought by the council in 2012, are moving forward.
An agreement will be sought from councillors at the upcoming Finance and Resources Committee to appoint a development partner and it is recommended that the £1.1million contract for the pre-development services be awarded Cruden Homes (East) Limited ahead of the full development starting in early 2022.
The masterplan for the site was approved in 2016 following, with the new Boroughmuir High School opening in 2018 - though an extension is to be built for the school.
There will also be 434 new homes, including 112 social homes, 10,333 sqm (net) of office space and new shops, social enterprise and community spaces.
The development "will complement" both the new Boroughmuir High School to the west and Vastint Hospitality’s “New Fountainbridge”.
In a statement on social media, Scottish Labour councillor Scott Arthur has hit out at the council over the issues with Boroughmuir High School.
He said: "Over ten years after it was bought, CEC is now ready to start developing the Fountainbridge regeneration site.
"The image shown is what's planned for across the road from Boroughmuir High School. Ten years ago I argued (as a Buckstone PS and Boroughmuir HS parent) that BHS should get that site so it could grow. I had concerns that the site it was allocated was too small.
"By the time the new BHS opened it was too small. An extension is now being built, but it will be full the day it opens. The Council is now so concerned it is contemplating a new school in south Edinburgh.
"This is an awful way to treat one of Scotland's best schools."
Councillor Rob Munn, Finance and Resource Convener, said: "An extensive process and strong scrutiny has gone into this procurement process to get us to this point. We’ll look to discuss this at committee next week and hope to agree that we have a pre-development partner in place that shares our vision while also offering us best value.
"Since the purchase of this underused brownfield site, and the development of the new Boroughmuir High School, we now want to deliver more social and affordable housing and space for businesses, particularly creating space for the data driven and digital sectors that are so important to Edinburgh’s economic recovery.
"It’s important that we build affordable homes across the city and in the areas that people want to live so it’s great that these homes are located so close to the city centre.
"The development will provide homes that are both cost-effective to heat and wheelchair accessible and will be a mix of council housing and mid-market homes, which will be managed by the council’s Edinburgh Living."
