'Bad architecture' in Galashiels consigned to history
- Published
More than 100 new homes will be built over the course of the development
The demolition of flats in a Borders town is to go ahead - paving the way for 115 new homes in the area.
Scottish Borders Council has agreed to part-fund the purchase of the remaining properties in private ownership at Beech Avenue in Galashiels.
The local authority will provide Waverley Housing with a £300,000 grant to complete the deal.
Consultation on demolishing the flats on the Upper Langlee estate has been ongoing since December last year.
The Hawick-based housing association plans to build more than 100 homes as part of the redevelopment of the site, but six home-owners on the estate have yet to sell up.
'Fantastic opportunity'
SBC will now help fund the purchase of those properties.
Galashiels councillor Euan Jardine said the development would take place over a number of years.
"It's going to be a fantastic opportunity for Langlee," he said.
"It's a chance to bring Langlee into this century.
"A lot of the old, tired buildings were really bad architecture from back in the Sixties."
He said one part of the old development would remain.
"People are telling us that they really want to keep the name Beech Avenue because it's a new legacy for the community, and to me that's what shines out the most," he said.
"It's sometimes got a bad reputation for no reason at all, and this is an opportunity to put it on the map as one of the highlights of the Borders."
Residents will be moved into temporary homes during the demolition and redevelopment process, but the specifics of where residents will be housed have yet to be confirmed.
'Pretty robust'
Homes now being built at nearby Melrose Gait are being investigated as an option.
The council's executive member for business and economic development, councillor Mark Rowley, added: "It's a big project. It's going to produce another 115 warm, affordable, modern homes."
He said he was "very confident" the consultation over the scheme had been "pretty robust".
"There's going to be a lot of disruption," he said.
"There are several blocks that are going to be demolished, but it's going to bring more than 100 homes on a fantastic site."
Story by local democracy reporter Joseph Anderson