One of Angus’s most historic buildings is in danger of falling to pieces, according to one worried councillor.
The Elms is on the Scottish Civic Trust’s Buildings at Risk Register for Scotland and the former children’s home has been abused and vandalised over the years.
The mansion is known to have collapsed floors and to be in a general state of disrepair, considered by emergency services to be potentially dangerous.
Ten years ago plans to convert the Elms into flats were approved but proposals to build houses in the grounds were rejected.
Shortly after, the title was transferred to a company with a registered address in the British Virgin Islands, casting doubt on who owns it.
The council served an urgent works notice in a bid to get important fabric repairs carried out but no response was forthcoming.
Since then the council has carried out an ongoing search in a bid to find a restoring purchaser for the property.
Arbroath councillor Bob Spink said: “It is always sad to see a beautiful and unusual building fall into long-term decay and the Elms in Cairnie Road is a prime example.
“This French Gothic style mansion house was designed by William Leiper in 1869 and was once the home of David Corsar, one-time Provost of Arbroath.
“Mr Corsar was a well-known and successful industrialist in his day and probably best known nowadays as the benefactor who gifted the Arbroath Library to the people of Arbroath.
“I remember the Elms of a long time ago as a home for missionary’s children and visited a few times with one of them who was in my class at school.
“My memories are of an imposing somewhat spooky large building with beautiful ornate dark wood everywhere.
“To look at this edifice today with its shattered and boarded windows, with grounds overgrown and neglected brings home to me the price we pay for these years of neglect.”
The Elms built around 1869 has also been a hotel and was used by the War Office during its life.
Mr Spink added: “The Elms is an A-listed building sadly now on the Buildings at Risk register.
“One wonders how long it will be before the cost of renovation is so great it will never be done and inevitably this built asset of Arbroath and wider Angus will disappear and future generations will be the losers.
“There has been developer interest in the past but its seems always to fall at the hurdle of its listed building status.
“To mitigate the cost of restoration and reuse in some way, it seems any potential developer seeks permission also to build modern housing in the grounds.
“As things stand at the moment, this is just not acceptable as its status means no building will be permitted within the grounds which would adversely affect the aspect of the A-listed building.
“In a way, its own importance hinders or prevents its redevelopment.
“This is a stalemate which so far has scotched any attempt at refurbishment of the main building and if a way is not found, then the Elms will continue to decay and prospects bleak for its future.”