TALL STOREYS
Plans revealed for the highest building in Scotland
PLANS have been unveiled to build what will be Scotland’s tallest building on Dundee’s waterfront.
Developers Invertay Homes say the a 39-storey skyscraper, named Discovery Heights, would tower over the new V&A museum of design and the Tay Road Bridge.
At a finished height of 141 metres, it would take the title of the country’s tallest building from the 125-metre Glasgow Tower, which is part of the city’s science centre campus on the bank of the Clyde.
It is estimated that the ambitious development would pump up to £200 million into the Dundee economy, and create almost 1,000 permanent jobs in the area.
The development would include a five-star hotel and sky bar, luxury apartments and a conference centre.
The building would be more than 60m taller than St Mary’s Cathedral, whose 90m spire marks it out as the loftiest in Edinburgh, and also would rise more than twice as high Glasgow’s 60m Cineworld building in Renfrew Street.
However, it would still be smaller than the Queensferry Crossing, which is around 200m tall at its highest point, and would remain the tallest structure in Scotland.
Invertay Homes said its next step would be to lodge formal plans with Dundee City Council for Site 12 at the Waterfront.
The two men behind the ambitious project, commercial director Mike Pratt and director of operations Eddie Wighton, said that, if given the go-ahead, their development could be worth hundreds of millions to the city’s economy.
Mr Wighton added: “We plan to build the tallest building in Scotland right in the heart of Dundee and we believe this will put Dundee on the global map.
“We need the moral support of local and national government to take this forward. “We believe this is the last piece in the whole regeneration and would create a focal point to be the Sydney Opera House of Scotland.
“The next step is to move towards a formal planning application and we need to carry out investigations of the site and move towards a detailed design.”
Mike Pratt said: “This will be a real focal point and will be something for Dundonians to be proud of.
“We want this to significantly complement and enhance the V&A. The opportunity for this is now because of the demolition of the old Olympia and the Hilton Hotel. This is a vacant site and is the perfect setting.”
A spokesman for the pair added: “We want to create the tallest building in Scotland but this project won’t just be the creation of an exceptional landmark, it will also bring multiple benefits to the local area and local people.
“This project would bring around £200m investment into the Dundee economy, the creation of hundreds of construction jobs, almost 1,000 permanent jobs once complete across the entire building, the opportunity to bring international investors and businesses to Dundee – and inclusion for all the people of Dundee to be a part of this incredible landmark.”
Dundee’s waterfront site is undergoing a £1bn regeneration. Work is being led by the Scottish Government, Dundee City Council and Scottish Enterprise.
The overall project will create about 7,000 jobs and is said to be well past its halfway point, with more than £600m already invested.
The new V&A museum of design is one of the flagship projects included in the waterfront’s regeneration.
The redevelopment also includes a new marina, port developments, offices, hotels, bars, shops, cafes and residential accommodation along with the City Quay – which features a new wakeboarding centre, and the Olympia swimming pool.