Earlier this year, Time Out revealed that Scotland could be getting a brand new town just outside of Edinburgh. Now, the town has officially been given the green light and will be ‘one of the most significant and sustainable urban expansions of Edinburgh in a generation’.
Plans for the new £2 billion West Town were given unanimous approval ‘in principle’ by City of Edinburgh council on December 4. It’ll be a 20-minute neighbourhood built on a 205-acre site to (you guessed it) the west of the city.
West Town will have all the elements of a modern UK town, including space for 7,000 new homes, two schools, a hotel, student accommodation, bars, restaurants, community areas and office space. There will also be 27-acres of open green space for residents to enjoy and direct access to Edinburgh’s tram line.
The project is the largest ‘single homes-led development’ in the Scottish capital in modern times. It’s being led by Drum Property Group.
In response to the planning approval, Graeme Broone, managing director of Drum said: ‘This planning consent is the next significant milestone in our journey to realise the ambition we share with the Council, as agreed in the City Plan 2030, to deliver a major transformation of the west of Edinburgh.
‘We now have the once-in-a-generation opportunity to make West Town an exemplar, sustainable 20-minute neighbourhood on a par with the best new developments taking place anywhere across the UK and Europe.’
The next steps involve agreeing on the different phases for construction and submitting them for planning approval. The initial focus is likely to be on building the new tram stop, creating a town centre, a new school and commercial, community and amenity spaces. Here’s what it is likely to look like.
New neighbourhoods
The UK is actually getting several brand new towns over the next few years. There’s one planned for Oxfordshire, a 1,500-home urban village in west London being built by Asda, a new ‘luxury town’ on the Thames backed by Porsche and Prince William is building a massive 2,500-home estate in southeast England. And if you’re still a bit confused on what exactly makes a 20-minute neighbourhood, we’ve got a helpful explainer here.
Did you see that this town is officially Britain’s most miserable place to live?
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