Plans to transform the centre of Perth could take another step forward after the council agreed to place the former Pullars building on Mill Street on the open market.
The decision was taken in a private meeting last week to protect commercial interests.
The empty block which stretches from Perth Concert Hall to the Kinnoull Street multi-storey car park was the focus of wrangling between conservationists and a group that wanted to raze it and create a “cultural hub” in the city centre.
That vision backed by the council fell through as the credit crunch bit and the block has remained unaltered since.
Because the meeting was behind closed doors details are sketchy, but the building has now been declared surplus to operational requirements and placed on the open market for sale “for a range of city centre uses, subject to a further report to committee when suitable offers have been received.”
The move has sparked hopes department store John Lewis could resurrect its interest in creating a Fair City branch, first mooted as part of KW Perth’s far-reaching plan to link the High Street with Mill Street and the concert hall.
It would have seen the Woolworths building, which is being redeveloped, torn down to create a new shopping boulevard with an open aspect to the hall thanks to the removal of the imposing Pullars block.
The car park would have been extended to link with a quality retailer-thought to be John Lewis’ fourth Scottish store-on a portion of the site.
The opportunity for the flagship retail space to have been linked directly to an extended multi-storey car park in the same way as their other Scottish stores in Edinburgh and Glasgow was seen as a benefit.No plans for PerthBut John Lewis apparently ruled themselves out for the time being yesterday, a spokesman saying, “John Lewis is often linked to new developments however, we have no current plans for Perth.”
Others had suggested it could be converted into a five-star hotel or an arts centre.
However, it will be as a quality shop which the council will be hoping the building is eventually used, with a desperate lack of retail space in the city centre.
When the KW Perth plan was submitted major competition from Dundee, Stirling and Fife centres was identified as a drain on the Fair City and that situation has not changed in the intervening years.
While backers of the project called the Pullars building an “eyesore,” the removal of which was vital to the overall vision, the likes of the Scottish Civic Trust and the Architectural Heritage Society of Scotland were vehemently opposed.
The Mill Street complex initially housed the Pullars dyeworks and dates from 1865.
Perth Civic Trust branded the demolition plans “deplorable.”
It said, “It is an impressive frontage and part of a building of historic significance which, if not scheduled, should be.”
The Kinnoull Street end of the complex is the council headquarters, while the other half was most recently used as local offices by the Department of Work and Pensions until its lease ran out three years ago.
Should the building be sold and redeveloped in any form, it will mark another dramatic change to the city centre landscape, with Perth City Hall to be demolished and the High Street undergoing a makeover.