A former probation hostel in Dundee city centre could be transformed into a residential development as plans are submitted to the local council.
Dundee-based Marketgait Developments Ltd is seeking permission to convert East Port House on King Street into 18 residential flats.
The building is adjacent Dundee’s Hotel Indigo, which was transformed from a former jute mill into a hotel and suites after a £24 million investment in 2018.
If the plans are approved, a mix of one to three-bedroom flats will be spread over the ground to second floor levels.
A planning statement submitted with the application also detailed that the existing central lift would be retained to promote easier access to all floors.
This, it said, would allow “greater independence to ageing residents and those
with physical disabilities”
No car parking spaces included
Provision of cycle parking spaces will be made also available to residents
within the two communal lobbies at street level.
However, developers say no car parking spaces will be created – with residents expected to rely on public transport or “physical methods of commuting”.
Both internal and external alterations to the building’s “historic fabric” will be kept to a minimum, with the intention that any changes will help renovate it “to its former glory.”
The planned change include enhancements to the central entrance at street level to “mimic the appearance of the full height glazed style of the eastern entrance”.
Conservation style sky lights will also be installed in the roof to satisfy “natural light and ventilation requirements” of domestic building regulations.
The lower half of building, which is accessed solely from Wishart Archway, is not part of the application.
The B-listed building dates back to the 1830s and was first a flax mill before being converted into a warehouse in 1850. It was then converted into offices in the early 1900s.
It has recently been listed on the market as a “commercial development” opportunity, with the advertisement detailing the building had been refurbished in recent years to provide secure residential/hostel accommodation.
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