More new housing in town

WORK has started on building two social housing projects in Lerwick that should make a big dent in the town’s waiting list for accommodation.

This week local builders went on site at Fort Road where Hjaltland Housing Association are putting up 12 one bedroom flats for 17 future tenants on the site of Shetland Islands Council’s former housing department.

Another 14 properties are under construction at Pegasus Place, off Ladies Drive in North Staney Hill, that should accommodate 38 people.

The developments should be completed by September next year and will cost £3.5 million, paid for by the Scottish government and a £1.25 million loan from the Bank of Scotland, taking Hjaltland’s total mortgage with the bank to £4.5 million.

The £1.5 million Fort Road development, designed by Dougie Thomson of Gilberts Architects to be built by Hunter & Morrison, is to be name Lyndhurst Place after the original house on the site which formed part of the Excelsior/Moonie’s Wake bar and nightclub.

The flats will be constructed with structural steel, blockwork and concrete floors for soundproofing and fire protection, using low maintenance materials like natural slates, larch boarding and Aluclad windows.

They will also be connected to the district heating scheme as well as having mechanical ventilation with heat recovery systems installed.

The £1.9 million Pegasus Place scheme is to be named Wista, meaning unsheltered, windswept place in the Shetland dialect.

This will comprise eight two-person flats, four three-person semi-detached houses and two five-person semi-detached houses designed by Redman + Sutherland and are being built by E&H Building Contractors.

The homes will be timber clad with enhanced insulation and will be heated by air source heat pumps to reduce heating costs.

For both developments the engineer is Arch Henderson, while Michael Thomson is the quantity surveyor and the CDM co-ordinator is the John Duguid Partnership.

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Hjaltland Housing Association’s chief executive Bryan Leask said the council had gifted the site at Fort Road.

“This is yet another example of us working in close partnership with the local authority to provide homes to meet the high level of demand in Shetland,” he said.

“There are currently 360 people on the housing list for Lerwick and the Fort Road and Pegasus Place developments will make a substantial contribution to reducing those numbers.”

Douglas Spowart, of Bank of Scotland, said they regarded it as “extremely important to extend our backing as part of our 25 year relationship with HHA”.