Two Edinburgh children’s charities have received £4,000 in donations from Amazon’s Development Centre in the city.
Amazon Development Centre Scotland donated £2,000 to Canongate Youth and £2,000 to The Yard.
The donations were made as part of the ‘Amazon in the Community’ programme, whereby the company supports the communities around its operating locations across the UK.
Canongate Youth supports children across Edinburgh and the Lothians, offering youth clubs, support services, advice and counselling. Amazon Development Centre Scotland has supported the charity since 2014.
The Yard is an organisation that creates safe play areas for disabled children and their siblings, giving them the chance to experience creative, adventurous indoor and outdoor play in a well-supported environment.
The charity plans to use the money to support more disabled children and families with online videos for early years, play ideas and relaxation, and work towards bringing more people back into the playground in line with current guidance.
Graeme Smith, Managing Director at Amazon Development Centre Scotland, said: “We are pleased to offer these donations to such brilliant charities. We hope the support will help both charities continue their important work with the children of our community.”
Amazon’s Tich Kent with Anna Robinson (left) partnership manager and Danielle Campbell play team leader.NOTE picture was pre-COVID
Jenny MacDonald, Director of Development at The Yard, added: “We are very grateful for this donation from the Amazon team and for their support of our mission to ensure every child has the right to safe and fun play. We would like to say a big thank you to Amazon for its kind support.”
Amazon’s Development Centre in Scotland is responsible for innovations used around the world by the company, including machine learning to power Amazon’s smart features like personalised recommendations and intelligent advertising.
Community donations is one of a number of ways in which Amazon is supporting communities across the UK during COVID-19.
Amazon is providing disadvantaged students with online STEM courses as well as teaming up with charity partner Magic Breakfast and delivering three quarters of a million healthy breakfasts to families around the UK.
For more information on how Amazon is supporting the UK during COVID-19, click here.
Latest update from the New Town North project team
Latest Information From The New Town North Project Team
Welcome to the fourth edition of our newsletter updating you on New Town North – a new mixed-use development being delivered in the heart of Edinburgh’s New Town by developers Ediston and Orion Capital Managers.
Plans are in place to transform a 5.9-acre site between Dundas Street and the King George V Park, previously owned by the Royal Bank of Scotland, into a vibrant mixed-use community bringing together new homes, offices and local amenities.
Project Update
We are aiming to submit the planning application for the New Town North development to the City of Edinburgh Council by the end of July 2020. The team is currently finalising proposals as well as considering feedback from all our statutory stakeholders and from the latest consultation event which was held in April 2020.
Because of the coronavirus lockdown, the planned public exhibition was replaced with a fully interactive online consultation which generated a huge amount of interest from local, national, and international audiences. Viewers could access updated design information online and use a special ‘chat-box’ to ask questions or raise issues before submitting an online feedback form. During the ‘live’ exhibition period, the website recorded almost 2000 hits with visitors hailing from Scotland, the UK and overseas – proving how much national and international interest there is in this development.
In total, 87 completed feedback questionnaires were received covering a wide variety of issues. This compared favourably with previous public exhibitions held in September 2019 (59 completed forms received) and December 2010 (77). Thanks to all those who took part in this latest public consultation and made it such a success. All feedback from individuals and from nearly a dozen local groups at numerous local meetings has helped inform our proposals.
Key Consultation Issues & Responses
Height and Scale of the Proposals
Some residents have expressed concern about the height and scale of the proposals. This has been raised throughout the consultation. As a result of our approach and the feedback, the proposals have been have been carefully designed to ensure that the overall scale and density of the proposed development are in keeping with the character of the surrounding area. Density levels reflect that of the existing communities and developments around the New Town North proposals.
Green and Public Space
Residents were keen to understand the impact of the proposals on King George V Park, and considerable effort has gone into ensuring that additional green space is created within the development and that it blends well with the park. In total the available green space and soft landscaping on the site will increase that provided within the park by more than 25%, in addition to extensive public realm in newly created courtyards and pathways. The design team has been determined to make a significant improvement to the available public space and is confident this has been achieved in the latest proposals. We’d like to thank everyone, particularly the Friends of the Park, for their help in improving the proposals through the consultation.
Tree Maintenance
Trees in the area have now been subject to detailed reports by two independent arboriculturists to make sure we are taking a fully informed approach. The tree survey work has included King George V Park and the tree belt along Royal Crescent and Fettes Row will be managed in order to maintain its long standing and important presence. The team is finalising proposals on how this can be best achieved with the Council. In addition to the long-term management of the trees on Royal Crescent and Fettes Row there will be considerable new tree planting incorporated into the soft and hard landscape throughout the proposals.
Overshadowing
Some residents asked about overshadowing of the park. The team has been aware of this issue from early in the consultation process and this has been fully taken into account in the latest proposals. The plans remain fully compliant with the guidance applied by the Council for development beside parks and public places and will not result in any material additional overshadowing and in a couple of locations will offer a moderate benefit. The team has always worked to ensure that the proposals are coordinated with King George V Park and the planning application will reflect that approach.
Parking
Some of the local residents have raised concerns about the number of car parking spaces and seem to have been advised that there were only going to be 20 car parking spaces created. We have no idea how this rumour originated, but we are delighted to clarify the position. Parking numbers are strictly controlled by the Council on new developments. The proposals comply with Council Parking Standards, with off street parking being created for a total of 164 cars, across all uses. We also have incorporated 700 spaces for cycle parking, also based on guidance from the Council.
Eyre Place Courtyard
Eyre Place residents have raised questions about the relationship of the new development with their existing courtyard, which currently abuts a blank wall adjacent to the existing office building. An expanded courtyard is being created adjacent to their properties. We can confirm that this expanded courtyard space is 50% larger than the existing space. Sunlight penetration into the courtyard will also be increased. There were also questions about overlooking, which is inevitable on any city centre development. Any new directly facing windows will be the same distance away, or further, than at present.
Materials
Many residents asked about materials being used in the development. We have been working hard with the Council and Historic Environment Scotland to get the right mix of stone and other materials for use in the development, which is obviously a major challenge on such a complex proposal. These discussions are nearing a conclusion and will be reflected in the Planning Application.
Pathways/Cycling
Some residents were concerned about increased cycling through the park. The proposals for pathway access have been significantly reduced to reflect these concerns and to manage the interface between pedestrians and cyclists, with one of the proposed access points being removed. This will create an environment where walking is given an appropriate priority.
Local Businesses on the Road to Recovery
Local business in Dundas Street and the area surrounding the New Town North development are now opening up for business, following almost four months of lockdown caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. And while economic forecasts for the area make grim reading, with Edinburgh predicted to record its highest levels of unemployment since July 1995, the New Town North planning application is set to bring confidence and hope to many neighboring businesses who are committing to a long-term future in the area.
Latest published research shows the New Town North development is poised to bring significant economic benefit to the local area, and the wider Edinburgh economy. A report by UK planning and engineering consultancy The Waterman Group, commissioned by Ediston, reveals that the operational phase of the development would create more than 700 full-time jobs whilst generating an annual GVA (Gross Added Value) economic uplift of £34.4 million to the local and regional economy.
The construction phase alone would create a further £27.7 million GVA at a regional level, creating a further 60 full-time jobs. And many of the local bars, restaurants, cafes, barbers, hairdressers and shops will also benefit from the huge amount of business and activity that development is set to generate during construction and beyond.
Reflecting the Best of the New Town
New Town North is a new mixed-use development being delivered in the heart of Edinburgh’s celebrated New Town by developers Ediston and Orion Capital Managers. Plans are in place to transform a 5.9-acre site between Dundas Street and the King George V Park, previously owned by the Royal Bank of Scotland, into a vibrant mixed-use community bringing together new homes, offices, hotels and local amenities. The site has lain largely derelict and inaccessible for almost three years since RBS moved out in 2017. We now have the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to transform this empty space into a world-class development for Edinburgh’s city centre, reflecting the very best of the city’s New Town. Visit Our Website
Feedback & Contact
For more information on New Town North, please contact:
Virtual Exhibition becomes real as staff prepare to open Ilona Szalay’s Some Are Born to Sweet Delight, Some Are Born to Endless Night at Arusha Gallery, Edinburgh
Exhibition Dates: 12 June 2020 until 12 July 2020
Arusha Gallery Opening Hours: Monday to Saturday 10am to 5pm, Sunday 1pm to 5pm.
After a little over 3 months since it closed its doors in March Arusha Gallery is set to reopen to the public. The gallery in Edinburgh’s New Town has measures in place to ensure social distancing is maintained, that staff are protected and a high level of hygiene is maintained.
Arusha runs a yearly programme of exhibitions, events and fairs, both nationally and internationally, with regular collaborations with guest artists, curators, festivals and institutions.
The Gallery has continued its exhibition programme throughout lockdown using online viewing rooms where its current exhibition Ilona Szalay’s Some Are Born to Sweet Delight, Some Are Born to Endless Night is on display.
It will remain there for those who are not yet able or comfortable with a gallery visit but last week the staff ensured that it now also hangs on the gallery’s walls ready for people to enjoy in person from Monday through until 12 July 2020.
Agnieszka Prendota, CreativeDirector at Arusha Gallery said: “We feel a huge sense of relief and release being able to open up the Gallery and share the wonderful work that our artists create with people in person again.
“It is a huge step forward. Our wonderful audiences and customers have been very supportive throughout this period but I know that we will all feel more joy for being able to come together albeit within restrictions to experience our artists’ work first hand and to reawaken parts of our souls that have remained locked up in recent months.
“We are in full mode preparing for the reopening, with a supply of masks, gloves and sanitiser to be accessible at the entrance to the gallery. We will have an A board outlining the social distancing measure within the gallery where they will move clockwise around the exhibition space.
“We have worked out that 6 people can be in the gallery at any one time. With all of these measures in place though the atmosphere in the gallery can remain relaxed and open. It’s certainly easier than navigating a supermarket!”
Some Are Born to Sweet Delight, Some Are Born to Endless Night shows a new body of work by Beirut-born Szalay on aluminium, glass and paper.
Szalay, a graduate of Central St Martins describes her work: “In the paintings we see statues petrified and bound on their pedestals. Disembodied arms which encircle with dependence and dominance.
“Broken mythological figures seemingly stunned by their own constraint and ineptitude. Gloriously ambivalent gods and goddesses remain coolly indifferent to what seethes below. And of course ‘the cage’ – the Blakian cage for the robin – the frame itself that holds the image, frozen in postures of pleasure, sensuality, pain, confusion, titillation and torture.”
Through a range of media from canvas to tracing paper, LED light to glass, Szalay engages the multitudinous dichotomies that make up both collective and individual subjective experience in her own restrained, poetic visual language.
Agnieszka Prendota added: “We are thrilled to be opening the gallery with Ilona Szalay’s show; her works are so tactile and enthralling.
“It feels right that, now again, it is possible for Edinburghs’ public to experience them in their full impact.”
New images have been published of New Town North – one of the largest regeneration projects to take place in Edinburgh for a generation.
The images have been revealed as part of an online public consultation event, launched in April, illustrating the latest design phase of the development to the local community.
The ambitious New Town North development is one of Scotland’s largest brownfield regeneration projects. It is set to transform the 5.9-acre former Royal Bank of Scotland site in Edinburgh’s New Town and is being delivered by property company Ediston on behalf of Orion Capital Managers, whose fund bought the site in May 2019.
Ediston is currently leading a major public consultation programme for the site, which sits between Dundas Street and King George V Park, prior to submitting a planning application to the City of Edinburgh Council later this year.
The developer launched the online interactive consultation following the cancellation of the previously planned public event following the coronavirus outbreak. The consultation can be viewed by logging on to the New Town North website: www.newtownnorth.co.uk.
Proposals include a mixed-use development replacing existing buildings with new homes, build-to-rent apartments, premium ofice space and a high-class hotel. Also planned are retail outlets, gym and health facilities together with extensive landscaping and new public realm.
Ross McNulty, Development Director at Ediston, reaffirmed the developer’s commitment to delivering a high-quality scheme. “Now, more than ever, we are 100% committed to progressing with our planning application this year,” he said.
“New Town North will provide a significant boost for the local area which will have a positive impact on local businesses -who are in desperate need of some good news right now.
“This is our third consultation event and provides an opportunity for the local community to have a clearer idea on how the development will look – even if they can’t attend an exhibition in person. Our team is working hard to be ready for significant engagement with residents to make sure they all have their say in our proposals.
“We are aware that this is a complex and large brownfield site with important links to some of Edinburgh’s finest streets and green spaces, and we are making sure we consult properly with local people to deliver a high-quality development.”
Research shows the New Town North development is poised to bring significant economic benefit to the local area and wider Edinburgh economy, following the closure of the RBS building in 2017 which employed more than 2,500 employees on the site.
The report, by UK planning and engineering consultancy The Waterman Group and commissioned by Ediston, reveals that the operational phase of the development would create more than 700 full-time jobs whilst generating an annual GVA (Gross Added Value) economic uplift of £34.4 million to the regional economy.
The construction phase alone would create a further £27.7 million GVA at a regional level, creating a further 60 full time jobs.
The site today
Mr McNulty added: “From our discussions with the local business community, we are aware of the impact that a large redundant site can have on the local area – and the huge potential of creating a new attractive destination and focal point for the area.
“Our research highlights the significant investment benefits that this high-quality development would bring to the Edinburgh economy, as well as helping to meet the pressing need for high quality new homes and ofice space.”
The New Town North development site was formerly the headquarters of the Royal Bank of Scotland. RBS first developed the site in 1978 to house ofices and a data centre. Before then, the site was home to St Bernard’s Football Club which disbanded in 1947.
AN EDINBURGH hotel is making traditional paper directories a thing of the past in its latest green effort.
Four-star boutique hotel Nira Caledonia has moved its directory online to its specially-designed mobile app in a bid to be more environmentally conscious. Continue reading Hotel bins directory to save trees
