Flats plan for former flax mill in heart of the city

A FORMER hostel in Dundee city centre could be converted into flats if plans submitted to the city council are approved.

City-based Marketgait Developments Ltd is seeking permission to convert East Port House on King Street into 18 flats.

The building is adjacent to the Hotel Indigo, which was transformed from a former jute mill after a £24 million investment in 2018.

A mix of one to threebedroom flats is planned at ground and second floor levels.

A planning statement also detailed that the existing central lift would be retained to promote easier access to all floors.

This, it said, would allow “independence to ageing residents and those with physical disabilities”.

Provision of cycle spaces will also be made available to residents in two communal lobbies at street level.

However, developers say no car parking will be created, with residents expected to use public transport or “physical methods of commuting”.

All alterations to the building’s “historic fabric” will be kept to a minimum, with the pledge that any changes will help renovate it “to its former glory.”

The planned change includes enhancements to the central entrance to “mimic the appearance of the full height glazed style of the eastern entrance”.

Conservation style skylights will also be installed in the roof to satisfy “light and ventilation requirements” of building regulations.

The lower half of building, which is accessed solely from Wishart Archway, is not part of the application.

The B-listed building dates back to the 1830s and was first a flax mill before being converted into a warehouse in 1850. It was then converted into offices in the early 1900s.

It has most recently been listed on the property market as a “commercial development” opportunity, detailing that the building had been refurbished in recent years to provide secure hostel accommodation.