Council / Call made for lanes site to be sold on as update presented to councillors
SHETLAND Islands Council (SIC) has been encouraged by one elected member to sell a site designated for the Lerwick Lanes project.
One year after councillors picked a preferred option for the lanes project, an update report came before the council chamber yesterday morning (Wednesday).
However, North Isles member Robert Thomson said he felt the SIC should sell the site – which will be cleared of the existing council flats – to a developer instead of taking the redevelopment job on itself, to reduce expenditure and save on officers’ time.
Shetland West member Liz Peterson also said she felt it was a project the council does not need to be taking on.
The report confirms that demolition of Shetland Islands Council’s remaining flats in the Pitt and Park Lane areas is scheduled to take place in 2025/26, at an estimated cost of £400,000.
The flats, which have been used for temporary accommodation, are ageing and their demolition is required before any further development can take place.
Beyond that though things appear slightly less clear, with clarity needed by the SIC over the Park Lane community garden.
Under the preferred option – which last year had an estimated cost of more than £2.5 million – a portion of the garden would remain.
But a report to members of the SIC’s development committee on Wednesday said the council needs clarity on whether the community group which tends to the garden will be able to provide maintenance on a long-term basis.
If they are not then alternative community groups could be sought, or the land returned to the council’s housing revenue account for potential development.
The update report said after the existing buildings are demolished and combined with part of the community garden site, the area could accommodate up to four housing plots.
An options appraisal evaluating different models of housing delivery will be carried out, with the aim of completion in mid-2026.
The report also reiterates that the site is located within a conservation area, which “does not preclude development” but impacts on areas such as design and cost.
It adds that a proposal to potentially add housing to Gladstone Terrace at the top of the site is “inextricably linked” to the ongoing provision of the community garden.
It said any future appraisal is scheduled for mid-2027, “by which time a clearer picture on the position of the community group and ongoing maintenance of the community garden will be known”.
The thorniest topic among the public has tended to be the possible impact on the old swimming pool car park.
The preferred option picked last year came with a reduction in parking from the current 144 spaces to 123.
The report said that should the Gladstone Terrace proposal proceed, a future appraisal will be undertaken, which will include an assessment of car parking requirements.
The existing car park will also be the subject of an appraisal by the council next year to determine whether a reconfiguration of the layout will achieve additional spaces and/or increase safety.
The item at Wednesday’s meeting went straight to debate, with no questions asked.
Thomson said it was his view that the council should “sell the lot as quickly as possible”.
He said he thought the private sector would do a “much more efficient job of getting it sorted out”.
Thomson also said he felt the cost of redevelopment could become “unviable” for the council.
Lerwick North and Bressay member Stephen Leask meanwhile said there needs to be a plan regarding the type of housing.
But he felt the idea of bringing in developers was a good one, while he also praised the idea of phasing the project.
Meanwhile fellow ward member Gary Robinson, who also backed a phased approach, said he would question if the SIC could build anything at all if it cannot build on serviced sites on land it owns.
He also said with reports of antisocial behaviour in the area, it may not be the best idea to leave the area undeveloped or hope somebody else will work on it.
Robinson added that despite big housing schemes ongoing in Lerwick, the lanes project could prove of benefit to building contractors too.
Councillor Peterson said she agreed with Thomson, adding that the committee had already heard that day about slippage with other projects and struggles with officer time.
“My view is that this is one project we didn’t actually need to take on,” she said, before referencing concerns over parking.
Meanwhile Shetland South member Allison Duncan, who chairs the local community safety and resilience board, said he felt the entire community garden should be removed.
He said there has been continued vandalism and antisocial behaviour there, and that the area would be better served with more housing and parking, if appropriate.
“Get that garden completely away – it’s serving no purpose but for the police having to make extra patrols day and night now,” Duncan said.
Councillors approved the implementation plan and noted the planned demolition of the council flats as well as that the SIC is proposing a phased approach to delivery of options on the site.
No final decisions have been made on the development of housing on site.
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