Delays in shop lets cost £50k
Units empty for over year
Agreements to let out new retail units in Goosecroft Road, which have been empty for more than a year, are in the final stages say Stirling Council officials.
At a recent meeting of the council’s environment and housing committee, officers said under offer stickers had now gone up on some of the windows in the units, which sit below city centre flats across from Stirling’s railway station.
Service manager John MacMillan said: “Papa John’s is going to start work at the end of February fitting out the corner site.
“Others are going through the final legal agreements for these units.”
In September it was revealed that delays in leasing the shop units had cost the council £50,000 in lost income.
At that time officials told councillors they were “extremely confident” they would soon be filled and were in the closing stages of leasing three out of the four.
In February 2017, however, the committee had heard that all but one of the units on the block had either seen a lease being signed or a deal close to being done.
At that time council officials said: “When we built them at first we thought the obvious types of business might be the likes of Tesco Express or convenience stores but that’s not the market we got at all.
“It’s very different to what we anticipated.”
In July 2017 the council confirmed that all three units were under offer, however would not comment further due to “commercial sensitivities”.
The £6million showpiece affordable housing development features 53 one- and twobedroom flats at the corner of Goosecroft Road and Maxwell Place - designed for those who are content to live car-free.
The block was built by CCG (Scotland) Ltd on behalf of Stirling Council and their partners Steadfast Homes and Stirling Development Agency.
Artwork panels on the side of the building represent period cameras and film projectors as the site used to be occupied by a cinema.
The artwork was by artist Andy Hazell and commissioned by Creative Stirling.
Papa John’s is going to start work