Plans to demolish an abandoned city centre hotel in Perth and build 12 flats in its place have been withdrawn weeks after the building collapsed in on itself.
The White Horse Inn on North William Street has been fenced off and declared dangerous by Perth and Kinross Council after nearby residents were forced to flee their homes in November when the roof caved in.
Following the collapse, the local authority gave the site owners, Perthshire Glazing Company, six months to make the building safe.
Video of the building is above this story.
The structure has been in a precarious state since 2013 when a major blaze ripped through the former hotel.
In August this year, Dundee-based John Frullani Architect submitted plans to demolish the building and erect 12 flats on the site on behalf of Aberkell Developments.
However the plans were suddenly withdrawn on Tuesday before any decision was made on the application.
Perth City Centre’s SNP councillor Andrew Parrot urged developers to come up with a new plan for the site as quickly as possible so work could be carried out on the eyesore.
Mr Parrot said: “This is very disappointing because it represents a further delay in the redevelopment of the site which would clear up the present mess and put the site to good use again.
“I can only assume that there are good reasons but I would urge developers to move forward with their business plan and try to bring that site into use.
“The developers obviously think that they need to think again but I hope the thinking again process proceeds as quickly as possible.”
The local councillor said that nobody in the area wanted to see a situation for the site similar to that of St Paul’s Church in Perth which lay empty for years.
Owners of the nearby hat shop Elegance called the withdrawal of the plans “disappointing”.
They said: “We definitely wanted to see something done with the place because it’s just a burnt out building.
“It’s disappointing to hear. I mostly feel sorry for the people next door because God knows where this leaves them.
“Who is ever going to take on the project now. It’s an ongoing saga.
“We’ve wanted something done for the past 10 years.”
Perthshire Glazing, John Frullani Architect and Aberkell Developments did not respond to requests for comment.
