The City of Edinburgh Council has appointed Hart Builders to design and build 150 brand new affordable homes at the former Silverlea care home in the North West of the city.

The Council-led development - which could start on site as early as Summer 2022 - will bring the derelict brownfield site back to life.

Hart is working with designers Smith Scott Mullan; Will Rudd Davidson; Hulley and Kirkwood and Hardies to bring forward proposals for the site as part of the £1.3bn Granton Waterfront regeneration project.

The site will provide net zero carbon homes for social and midmarket rent as part of Edinburgh's ambitious 20,000 affordable homes target as well as a new home for Craigroyston Community Youth Football Club.

Residents will benefit from improved energy efficiency and savings on fuel bills, helping to halt our impact on climate change. Residents will have access to high quality green space and links to the promenade and shoreline.

In addition to delivering the project, the contractor will provide a range of community benefits for surrounding residents including apprenticeships and mentoring programmes as well as supporting local organisations.

The £18m investment will be funded by the Council and grant funding from the Scottish Government.

Councillor Kate Campbell , Convener of Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work, said: "Granton is a site of national importance – recognised by the Scottish Government as strategically significant. To us it's an opportunity to provide a large number of the much-needed affordable homes, and to open up a beautiful part of our city's waterfront so that residents can live there, work there and enjoy it.

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"The views are amazing, the history is rich – and it's our job to build homes and community spaces so that we protect and enhance that history and make it a fantastic place to live.

"I'm delighted that we have approved significant funding for Granton Station, one of the most important historical buildings, and that we now own, and are working to light up the gas holder. It's critical that new development grows up around these buildings respecting, and enhancing, the history of this important part of Edinburgh.

"We've also got plans for a coastal park linking Granton Harbour, Cramond and Lauriston Castle, which will be one of the largest coastal parks in Europe.

"Residents told us during consultation on the masterplan that they wanted to see things happening on the ground, not a document sitting on a shelf.

"Appointing a contractor for these 150 new homes at Silverlea demonstrates clearly that we're listening, and that we will get things moving so that our collective vision for this special part of our city can be realised."

Councillor Mandy Watt, Vice Convener, said: "All of the steps we're taking to make homes – new and existing council owned - more sustainable are also making them warmer and more cost efficient. This helps us to tackle poverty by making the running costs of a home more affordable as well as helping us meet our targets to tackle climate change.

"Already under way is our extensive £350 million investment programme in council housing which will, over the next 10 years, make them more energy efficient, help tenants save money on their energy bills and ensure more generally they are comfortable to live in.

"The appointment of a contractor is great news as this development will not only deliver much needed affordable homes but the project will also boost employment and help our economy recover from the challenges of the pandemic."

Gill Henry, Business Development Director for Hart Builders, part of the Cruden Group said: "We are absolutely delighted to have been selected to deliver the Silverlea project in partnership with The City of Edinburgh Council. This landmark development will not only deliver one of the first net zero carbon home initiatives to the capital, it also provides the opportunity to really focus on placemaking and designing homes for the future and will address many of the issues highlighted throughout the pandemic in terms of homeworking, home schooling and the importance of accessible green spaces.

"Importantly, we are looking forward to engaging with Craigroyston High School and Edinburgh College to encourage more young people into the construction industry and offer first-hand experience of a live project being constructed on their doorstep. We will also be offering training and employment opportunities for local SMEs; supported work placements and employment opportunities for members of the community and sponsorship for local organisations to ensure the community benefits as far as possible from this new development."