Scottish Opera plans hit the right note with Glasgow planners

Scottish Opera is set to get the go ahead for a major redevelopment of its current Glasgow headquarters at New Rotterdam Wharf. The plans, submitted earlier this year, propose consolidating Scottish Opera’s five existing premises into a single site, creating a dedicated rehearsal space plus breakout, storage and flexible workspace while releasing land for the development of hundreds of purpose-built student bedrooms. Scottish Opera currently operates from a rented HQ in an ageing Victorian building at 39 Elmbank Crescent and a large orchestra rehearsal space at Hillington Park, Renfrewshire, on a short-term lease. It is these operations it wants to consolidate at its existing production facility at 40 Edington Street in the heart of the New Rotterdam Wharf site. Two blocks with a total of 705 student beds will be developed on either side of a new Scottish Opera building. The North block will deliver 406 beds and rise to 20 storeys, with the South building rising to 15 storeys and delivering 299 beds. Scottish Opera is understood to already be in negotiations with a major PBSA operator for the two student blocks. The New Rotterdam Wharf site extends to around five acres to the north of Glasgow city centre and next to the Forth and Clyde Canal in the Port Dundas area of the city. Although the plans are recommended for approval at Glasgow City Council’s next planning meeting, the scheme has attracted a number of objections, including the impact on views of Speirs Wharf, a lack of need for student accommodation in the area, fire safety issues and the size, scale, mass and density of the development. Glasgow’s planning officers said approval of the scheme would not only secure the future of Scottish Opera and support the ongoing success of the city’s cultural quarter, but presented a “major opportunity to regenerate a brownfield site, improving the setting off and access to the western side of the Forth and Clyde Canal”. They added: “The provision of active frontages and commercial uses would encourage footfall and in turn contribute to the vitality, viability and safety of the area.” Ryden is advising Scottish Opera on the plans; Page/Park is the architect. Images © Page/Park