Redevelopment of Edinburgh's Cameron Toll to create 'genuine 20-minute neighbourhood'
Developers behind the revamp of Cameron Toll claim the plans for new housing next to the shopping centre will make it a "genuine 20-minute neighbourhood and town centre for the area".
More than 400 people attended a public exhibition as part of the consultation on new masterplan for the area.
The proposals include retaining and improving shopping and leisure facilities, protecting Sainsbury's as the key anchor tenant and making new retail units available to current operators to help retain them on the site, while attracting new brands, wider leisure facilities, and a hotel.
It is proposed to build up to 500 new homes for families, of which up to 175 would be affordable, which the developers say would help address Edinburgh's housing emergency.
There would also be new student housing to serve nearby campuses at Kings Buildings, Peffermill and ERI/College of Medicine.
A new tram-ready transport hub could link to both the now North-South tramline and the potentially reopened South Suburban Railway.
And an improved Braid Burn walkway with the burn "daylighted" for more of its length would link with Inch Park.
Developers Hunter REIM said the previous consultation event in December had shown overwhelming support for the Cameron Toll's role as shopping destination and also for the leisure facilities.
The proposals had been refined since then and would now be subject to further consultation with local community groups as part of a "consultation roadshow" that will be organised with community councils, residents’ groups and other stakeholders.
Andrew Moffat, managing director of Hunter REIM said: “We’ve been delighted to hear the positive comments about Cameron Toll from residents and to know how important it is to the local community.
“However, we can’t ignore the huge upheaval in shopping that’s taken place in recent years, with 91 UK retailers failing in the last two years, which has affected 10,000 stores.
"We need to ensure that Cameron Toll is regenerated in the coming years and that we improve the quality and range of shopping and leisure facilities. In addition, new housing on site can help tackle the housing emergency by providing new homes for families, and the proposed student housing can help return flatted accommodation to residential use. We’re also determined to make sure the development is tram-ready.
"Parking was the biggest issue raised at the consultation, and we are consulting closely with user groups to get the balance of parking right for shops, shoppers and local residents.
"We’ve sought to closely follow the guidance in the council’s City Plan 2030, which prioritises appropriately dense development on brownfield sites like Cameron Toll in order to protect the city’s Green Belt and Cameron Toll can help achieve that.
"We’ve seen in Edinburgh how successful the St James Quarter and the trams have been in regenerating the city centre, and we’re no less ambitious regarding the scale of improvement we can achieve at Cameron Toll.”