Development consortium West Town Edinburgh Ltd, which owns 205 acres of development land to the west of Edinburgh, has agreed a memorandum of understanding with eh city council, setting out how they will work together on a strategy for the West Town site.
The 205-acre West Town site – between Ingliston Park & Ride and the Gogar Roundabout at the western gateway of Edinburgh – is considered to be a strategically important development area. The £2bn project would substantially expand the Scottish capital. The area is identified in the City of Edinburgh Council’s City Plan 2030 as having the potential to become a high-density city extension with 7,000 homes, along with the commercial and community facilities required for a so-called ‘20-minute neighbourhood’.
The aspiration is to start construction work on site as early as next year, with the first phase of homes and amenities being ready for occupation from early 2026.
City of Edinburgh Council leader Cammy Day said: “Edinburgh is quickly becoming a trailblazer for the type of affordable, sustainable homes our residents need and this overlooked land at West Town could pave the way for thousands more. We are leading the way as a city to harness new technologies to make developments greener and fairer – building low and zero carbon homes which are energy and cost efficient – so I’m looking forward to working with West Town Edinburgh to build on our net zero ambitions. Wherever you are in Edinburgh and wherever you choose to go, everyone should feel connected to all of the amenities they need to live well locally, so I’m pleased to see their vision for a 20-minute neighbourhood approach.
“As a council we’ve been modernising planning and procurement policies so that we can maximise the amount of affordable and social housing and community benefits each new development brings. Currently, over 150 households bid for every council and housing association home that becomes available, so we must set our sights on this development unlocking a huge amount social housing. With demand for affordable homes higher than ever before, this is what our city desperately needs.”
Graeme Bone, managing director of Drum Property Group, leading the developers, added: “This agreement is a major step forward in realising the ambition we share with the council for the area and for the city, further strengthening the long-term collaborative process that is set to deliver a positive and high-quality transformation of the west of Edinburgh.”
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