Here is our latest weekly round-up of Edinburgh’s newly submitted planning applications.

Proposals put forward this week include a new cafe in a walled garden in Pilton, a new high-tech green data centre at South Gyle, and plans to turn a Murrayfield hair salon into a new cafe.

There are also plans to turn a picture framing workshop into a new restaurant, as well as extensions to a hostel in the Old Town and a hotel at Crewe Toll.

1. Cafe in walled garden

The Edinburgh & Lothians Greenspace Trust (ELGT) has submitted plans for a proposed café is to sit alongside wider improvement and enhancement works to the former play area at West Pilton Park. Planning permission was previously obtained in December last year for park-wide enhancements, including reference to a future café which is now the subject of this application. Although the ELGT is the applicant, it acts on behalf of the project funder The Mushroom Trust. If approved, the single storey cafe would have a pitched roof and be operated by catering social enterprise Scran Academy. The public toilets part of the project will be managed by the City of Edinburgh Council. A growers’ area associated with the project would come under the stewardship of an established local growers group, Fresh Start. | Edinburgh & Lothians Greenspace

2. Green data centre

Shelborn Drummond Ltd has submitted an application for planning permission in principle (PPP) to build a new Green Data Centre at South Gyle. The proposals for 1 Redheughs Avenue also include associated infrastructure, landscaping, servicing, car and cycle parking. Also part of the plans would be a new public park with sports facilities, and the formation of active travel routes. The plans are in support of a National Development Planning Permission in Principle application for the redevelopment of the existing vacant site to facilitate a Green Data Centre and new public park. The development would “constitute vital digital infrastructure and would facilitate and maximise the potential of the Digital Fibre Network”, according to the applicant.

Who also said: “A shortage of suitable data centre capacity is emerging as a significant constraint on the growth of AI, the broader digital economy, and wider economic development.”

The applicant also said that this proposed PPP would allow for a next-generation, ‘hyperscale’ Green Data Centre, based on modern cooling technology which uses less energy than on other traditional data centre typologies. And that it would be suitable for operation by major cloud providers and tech companies such as Google, Amazon or Microsoft. | Shelborn Drummond Ltd

3. Cowgate hostel extension

J & M Cameron Properties Limited is proposing a five-storey extension at the Kick Ass Greyfriars Hostel at 37-39 Cowgate, with plans lodged with the City of Edinburgh Council’s planning department on August 26. The proposals are for the extension of hostel premises comprising guest accommodation on the upper floors, and a public bar on the ground floor incorporating a partial conversion of the existing ground floor, plus minor ancillary internal alterations. The fourth floor would provide a lounge area. This drawing shows how the extension would look at the Cowgate hostel if the plans are approved. And the applicant is also looking into a possible further extension on land at the current sub station, seen to the right. | Hackland + Dore Architects

4. Hotel extension

VUR Village Trading No. 1 Ltd has submitted plans to extend the Village Hotel at 140 Crewe Road South. The development sits entirely within the existing hotel site and will be constructed above the existing surface-level car park. There will be a reduction in existing vehicle parking provision by a total of 14 spaces. The extension will provide 52 additional guest bedrooms. Four existing guest rooms will be lost to accommodate the link corridor, resulting in a net increase of 48 bedrooms to the hotel’s overall capacity. The proposals form part of Village Hotels’ wider investment strategy which includes facility extensions across several sites as part of a nationwide upgrade programme. The proposed extension takes the form of a single projecting wing, positioned perpendicular to the existing east–west-aligned hotel block. The ground floor accommodates essential service areas and a pend, which will allow uninterrupted vehicular access and circulation through the existing car park. Guest rooms are located on the upper floors. The extension adopts a material palette consistent with the existing hotel, featuring black metal cladding panels, articulated with vertical breaks formed by tinted glazing and black spandrel panels. Black brickwork is proposed at the base of the fire escape access core. | 3D Reid

5. Plans to turn hairdresser’s shop into new cafe

Francacia & Co has applied for a change of use application with restricted cooking facilities to turn ID hair salon at 3 Murrayfield Place into a new cafe. The plans show a layout change on the shop front to accommodate 20 covers for the new cafe. The current reception area would be removed if the plans are approved, and a customer counter would be placed by the stairs. The ‘backwash’ area at the rear of the floor would be transformed into a kitchen to prepare food. No external changes are proposed other than a change in signage to signify the new venture. | Google Maps

6. New restaurant at picture framing workshop

Caroline Freedman applied for a change of use application on September 9 to turn this picture framing workshop into a new restaurant at 8 Antigua Street at the top of Leith Walk. There are no external alterations proposed. The kitchen would be to the rear of the shop floor. New signage is proposed and a possible new paint scheme.

In the planning documents, the applicant said: “It is a small unit. The change from retail workshop to restaurant should not lead to any adverse impacts. It would be entirely in keeping with the character of the area. As it is beneath residential properties, the main issue will be protecting residents from cooking smells and noise from the premises. The fact that this unit is lost within so many class 3 (restaurant) uses is detrimental to the viability of the unit as a retail unit, and it would be far more economically beneficial to operate as a class 3 use. The existing use is historic and has only continued as the current occupier has perpetuated a family business over the past century. This is sadly about to end and it is not likely that this would now be seen as a suitable business or retail location. The proposed change of use is the best way forward.” | Google Maps

 

***END***

Disclaimer:  DATACENTRE.ME may not be held responsible or liable for the content or details within this news article.

For further information, please refer to the full details of this article via the original source here.