THE site of Edinburgh’s Old Town fire is set to be transformed into a Fringe venue under plans by property owners to breathe life back into the derelict area.
A giant marquee would be erected on the Cowgate site to allow it to be used for exhibitions and live music during this year’s Fringe under plans being considered by the landowners.
Details of the discussion about the area’s future have emerged as
it was announced that the fire site, where nightspots including the Gilded Balloon comedy club used to stand, would shortly be handed over to the nine main property owners affected by last December’s blaze.
They include Raymond Codona, the owner of the former Leisureland amusement arcade; Hafid Mahboub, the owner of the La Belle Angele nightclub; Forbes Leslie, the owner of the Gilded Balloon building; and Edinburgh University.
Mr Mahboub said it made sense to cash in on the extra numbers of visitors to the capital during the summer arts festival with a temporary venue.
He said: "We’re all very keen to do something as it would be a great shame to have a huge hole in the ground. This was a real hub of activity during the Fringe and we’d like to have something going on of a similar nature.
"One possibility could be something like the Spiegeltent or a big marquee where performances could be staged."
Final road and pavement repairs on South Bridge are expected to be carried out over the next week. Hoardings are to be removed from South Bridge and replaced by railings, enabling pedestrians to look down on to the fire site for the first time.
Malcolm Fraser, an architect based in Edinburgh, revealed the property owners were all in the process of signing a formal agreement to work together to develop the site.
His company is expected to be commissioned within weeks to produce detailed designs which will form the basis of a planning application to the city council, although he confirmed work has already begun on outline drawings.
Mr Fraser said: "There’s going to be the first meeting between the property owners after the formal agreement has been signed in the next few weeks and this will be one of the first things to address.
"We’d have to be very careful with whatever we go ahead with for health and safety reasons, and there could be difficulties with providing proper sound insulation with a marquee.
"It might be easier to have sculptures or some kind of exhibition there, but it would certainly be good to keep the site in the public eye."
Mr Fraser also said the owners had appointed legal representatives, the Edinburgh-based solicitors Shepherd and Wedderburn, to represent their joint interests and help set up a development company.
Donald Anderson, the Edinburgh City Council leader, said: "The future of the site is one we all await with anticipation, and I hope the owners continue to work together to fill this space with something fitting."
The full article contains 533 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
