Scotland

Major new redevelopment progresses at Anstruther Caravan Park

A large-scale new housing development worth ÂŁ20 million is under construction at the now disused Anstruther Caravan Park in Cellardyke, Fife.

More than three hundred homes are being built in a wide variety of sizes and styles on the site, which has been re-named Silverdyke, including flats, bungalows, terraces, semis and detatched accommodation.

This huge project neighbours the historic fishing village of Anstruther, which holds many tourist attractions, but has a relatively small population.  Cellardyke is an eastern extension of Anstruther, and the many new houses being built at Silverdyke will form a significant addition to the area.

However, Site Manager Danny Robin explained that the development had been planned with considerable consultation between the developer Muir Homes and the local community, since Muir Homes bought the site around ten years ago. “There’s a local community committee,” he said, “which meets with the developers on a monthly basis”. He also told us that the new housing was proving popular with the locals, with several of the new houses being bought by current residents of the town who were looking to upgrade.

Mr Robin also explained that the wide range of housing types available mean that there was no single specific market at whom the homes were aimed. Interest in the housing was coming from many different types of people, including senior citizens looking for retirement bungalows, families and those who had kept caravans on the site and were now investing in a permanent holiday home.

Despite its large scale, the development has been designed to be unobtrusive, and in keeping with the local architecture. “We’ve kept the blocks of flats down to two storeys, rather than making them high-rise, because there are no high-rise blocks in the Fife region.” said Mr Robin. “Nothing’s going to be sticking out too offensively in the landscape.”

The houses also showcase Muir Group’s commitment to reducing the carbon footprint of new houses, and helping owners to keep down running costs. These are the first Muir Homes to incorporate solar panels as standard in the bungalows and houses, which will be used for heating water.

Besides houses, the site has been built with two units which will become a convenience store and a chemist, and in the middle of the development there will be a large green-space. The council will also be providing several concrete obelisks to be placed decoratively around the site.

The architects on the project were Roy Mitchell Design.

The first phase of the development is due to be completed in spring 2012.

 The Zaha Hadid-designed building houses around 3,000 exhibits in approximately 150 displays. It is the third home for the transport museum sinceGlasgowfirst opened it in the 1960s. Riverside Museum is the first purpose built transport museum in Glasgow and is the first major museum Glasgow has built since The Burrell Collection opened in 1983.

The new museum has a deep wall and roof makeup and triple thickness glass that help to stabilise the environment within the building and conserve heat. The glazing is heavy filtered to contain solar-gain, particularly on the south-facing façade.

Because high light levels damage materials such as textiles, wood and paper, light levels will be set low enough to reduce damage, but high enough to make it easy for visitors to get around. The cold cathode lighting chosen is energy efficient and has very long life.

Much of the display lighting uses innovative low-power LED technology to reduce power consumption and further stabilise the environment inside the building.

The museum is one of the most complex structures built in the UK. Its self-supporting roof is made up of a latticework of structural steel (weighing over 2,500 tonnes) and beneath the museum is 1.2km of underground trenches for the services. The outer ‘skin’ of the museum consists of 24,000 zinc panels, weighing around 185 tonnes. Most of them are bespoke and were engineered on site due to the building’s flowing, undulating design.

In January 2010, the project was given a 5 out of 5 inspection by the independent Considerate Constructors Scheme (CCS). The CCS’s report highlighted Riverside Museum’s considerate use of building materials, which included recycling wood rather than sending it to a landfill. The CCS grading, which also looked at cleanliness and safety, means that Riverside Museum was one of the most responsible construction sites in Britain.

Buro Happhold are the exhibition designers for the project, which now displays more than three thousand artifacts, from skateboards to locomotives. The exhibition features a recreated 1900s street for visitors to walk down, where they will be able to interact with characters and take part in the happenings that will explain Glasgow’s maritime history. High tech, hands-on  displays are set up to appeal to all the family, examining the past but also encouraging visitors to look forward to what the future may have in store for the city.

An exciting recent addition to the attractions on offer, the Tall Ship Glenlee is now moored at the Riverside Museum, and it has been welcoming the public on board since June.

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