Alba Town - General Development - Glasgow, Merchant City
Date: 06 Feb 2008
Dunbar Bank is to fund a £6.6m development of 35 flats and a penthouse by Alba Town on the Corner Site at the junction of Bell Street and High Street, in Glasgow's Merchant City.
The Merchant City was once the medieval hub of Glasgow. In the in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, it became known for the townhouses and warehouses of the 'Tobacco Lords'. In the twenty-first century the transformation of the area's faded grandeur has created a location which represents one of the UK's most exciting regeneration projects.
To date, over £3m in public grants has been spent in Merchant City, which in turn has attracted over £25m of private investment. This financial commitment has resulted in many fine buildings being restored, which in turn has created a thriving residential community and a vibrant leisure and retail destination.
Alba Town is led by directors Andrew Borthwick and Hugh Pringle. They were amongst the first to spot the area's potential and Alba has become a specialist developer in the quarter. They have now completed four developments in the area over the last four years. These schemes are located on Bell Street, High Street and St Andrew's Square.
Work has begun on the Corner Site which has consent for 35 one bed flats of around 500 sq ft that rise up over seven floors. The development will be crowned with a 2,200 sq ft luxuriously fitted out penthouse.
It is proposed that the 35 flats will be marketed at £140,000 with the penthouse being sold at £400,000. The scheme also has two retail units each totaling 6,000 sq ft on the ground floor. These have already been sold to Glasgow retail property specialist Cromdale Limited for £1m.
Alba Town's Andrew Borthwick said: "This development which sits on a very prominent site is an obvious addition to Alba Town's existing developments, which have generated increased interest in the area. These flats are ideally placed to take advantage of the considerable demand for affordable property in central Glasgow.
"We have already received a lot of interest from parents seeking to buy for their children starting university and also from investors who want to buy ahead of the Commonwealth Games coming to Glasgow in 2014."
Dunbar Bank's Scottish regional lending manager Mark Smith said: "This will be the third scheme we have financed for Alba Town in this neighbourhood. The style and quality of the build and its affordability should assure the success of this development."
Alba Town were amongst the first to spot Merchant City's potential
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