Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Fate of fire-gutted Carnoustie shop to be decided

Fate of fire-gutted Carnoustie shop to be decided

The fate of a fire-gutted fixture in Carnoustie High Street will be decided by a full council meeting this week.

Number 18, formerly a laundrette and greengrocers, has lain empty since it was claimed by fire in January last year.

On Thursday, councillors will be given the option to restore the shop with flats above, but have been advised to go for the cheaper option of housing alone.

Their decision will follow a community poll that saw overwhelming support for the shop and housing approach. OurCarnoustie held a Facebook poll last month, which recorded a pro-shop response of 86%.

Gallery: Carnoustie High Street fire

A new report by planning and place director Vivien Smith asks councillors to approve the flats-only approach, however, which would cost £70,000 less than the alternative.

A contribution of £200,000 will be made by a Scottish Government town centre housing fund, subject to acceptance by councillors.

The acquisition process for the premises has already begun.

Ms Smith states: “A workable model has been identified for a design/build partnership arrangement which could deliver a mixed development.

“However, the scheme would be expensive for the developer partner to deliver, leading in all probability to the cost being higher than the resultant asset values.

“This means that the cost would be far in excess of the option to deliver affordable housing only.”

The cost of the recommended option is estimated at £375,000 a net cost of £175,000 after the Scottish Government grant.

The second option, to build the flats above a shop, would be delivered for about £505,000.

The finished unit would be retained by a business partner for £60,000, and the Government grant would reduce the net cost to £245,000.

Ms Smith adds: “There is a risk that if the acquisition of the site is progressed without resolving the end use, it will mean that the (housing revenue account) will be in ownership of an unused and unsightly asset, and that the council’s reputation with the Scottish Government would be compromised as we would have to decline the offer of grant funding.

“Although a design/build arrangement could be put in place for a mixed housing and retail development, it would come at a relatively high cost.

“As the provision of affordable housing in Carnoustie is considered a high priority, it is recommended instead that the council go forward with option one, the provision of four flats without the retail unit, which will still improve an unsightly asset in this part of the High Street, and help more people into good-quality affordable homes.”

Most of the OurCarnoustie voters said they thought the space should be converted into both shops and flats, while just 14% of those polled thought the empty building should be converted into flats only.