The Craighouse Partnership has submitted its planning application to build on the former Edinburgh Napier University campus.

The City of Edinburgh Council has received the plans for the 51 acre campus site.

Work will begin to build new residential homes on the grounds once the University leaves in May 2013.

153 homes are to be built, 64 of which will be from conversions of existing buildings. The remainder will be new builds.

Loss of green space is expected to be minimised, with only 3.5% of the site being built upon.

The majority of green space is proposed to be handed into public ownership to guarantee public access in perpetuity.

The number of trees on site is due to be increased by more than 250 through a planting scheme.

The Old Craig building – an original building on the site – will be restored to a single home with its own private walled garden.

-- Advertisement --

The designs incorporate the materials used in the original buildings. Sandstone and lime render will be used together with slate, zinc and lead for roofs.

The development plans have been prepared by Edinburgh based architects Oberlanders and conservation architects Simpson & Brown.

William Gray Muir, Managing Director of Sundial Properties, said: "The Craighouse Partnership has engaged in an extensive period of consultation with the public since we first announced that the site would be developed for homes after the last students leave in May 2013.

"We have had two rounds of formal consultation events in September 2011 and March this year where the public has seen our plans and given us their detailed comments. In addition to this we have put in place a thorough programme of community engagement with the establishment of an independently chaired Liaison Forum and numerous meetings with community councils and other interested groups.

"The most consistent concerns which were expressed to us were over our original proposal to build on the orchard area and over how legally robust the guarantees of continued public access over private ground could be. Our final proposals very positively address these issues, by removing all new building from the orchard area and seeking to gift the majority of the green space into public ownership to protect public access in perpetuity."

(IT)