The seeds have been sown in a leaf-shaped eco-garden at Ninewells after being awarded full planning permission.
After winning an NHS competition the Voigt Partnership’s timber designed ‘Leaf Room’ is to become the heart of Ninewells Hospital Community Garden.
The chance to develop their idea into reality is now moving forward after permission was granted by Dundee City Council.
The main aims of the project are to create to provide a safe, accessible, and inclusive environment for gardening activities which encourage unity, identity, community spirit and partnerships, and will encourage participation by a wide range of people of all ages and abilities in garden-related activities that are creative, sociable, educational, healthy and/or enjoyable.
Jonathan Reeve, architect at the Voigt Partnership, said: “The leaf room is inspired from a natural form helping to connect the building to the garden it serves.
“The proposed building replicates this natural form with a leaf-shaped roof overhanging a rectangular shaped room underneath.
“The building will be extremely environmentally conscious being constructed primarily in natural Scottish timber, and will be uniquely 100% ‘off grid’, not requiring any service connections.
“There will be a self-composting toilet and sink, no electricity requirements (due to the large amount of natural light coming into the building and a solar powered security light), and rain water will be harvested from the roof and collected in a large container at the rear of the building to help water the garden.”
He added: “The new room could be a fantastic addition to garden. It is hoped that staff, patients and the general public will benefit from this and be attracted the to the excellent existing community garden which is a real hidden gem at the hospital.”
A building warrant application is being lodged, and applications for tender are being invited this month. Works are hoped to start on site in the new year (Jan/Feb 2016).