'Eyesore' hotel that lay empty for decades demolished
The former Royal Hotel has lain empty for more than two decades
- Published
A former hotel in Falkirk that was branded an eyesore after sitting empty for more than two decades has been demolished.
Falkirk Council bought the former Royal Hotel in Slamannan, external earlier this year and hired a demolition firm to raze the building to the ground.
The local authority said it expected the entire site to be cleared by Friday.
The land will be transformed into a green space and the local community asked to take part in a consultation exercise to decide how it should be used.
The former hotel stood on the village's Main Street
Falkirk Council leader Cllr Cecil Meiklejohn said: “The hotel was an eyesore that gave a negative impression of the area and was in such poor condition that it could not be renovated.
"As a council we were determined to fix that by taking ownership of the building and demolishing it.
"We’ve committed regeneration funding for Slamannan and can now work with the local community to revitalise this prominent site in the heart of the village.”
The hotel building, pictured here in 1909, dates from 1866
Built in 1866, the hotel was a popular destination in its prime.
A number of structural issues have arisen as the building decayed, including the partial collapse of the rear extension.
The council bought the site thanks to a new scheme introduced by the King's and Lord Treasurer’s Remembrancer (KLTR), external, the Crown's representative in Scotland dealing with ownerless properties.
Officers from the council worked with KLTR to gain ownership of the property through the Ownerless Property Transfer Scheme (OPTS).
The council paid £1 and the KLTR’s external costs for the building.
The KLTR formally launched the OPTS on 1 March this year to make it easier for local authorities, public bodies, and community groups to transform neglected and ownerless buildings for local benefit.