The property development process: a Scottish case

Fisher, Peter (2009) The property development process: a Scottish case. In: ERES 2009, 24-27 June 2009, Stockholm.

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Abstract

An existing model of the commercial property development process was applied to a mixed use redevelopment site. The case studied was the redevelopment of 7.7 hectares of previously developed land in central Edinburgh containing nine listed buildings. 158,000 square metres of accommodation are planned, 65% of which will be residential and 25% offices. The site was first marketed in 2000, construction began in 2005 and approximately 40% of the project was completed by the spring of 2009. The single case study was investigated by inspection of documents and plans, site visits and semi-structured interviews with senior executives representing all the companies and organisations that were influential in decision making. It was found that the commercial model was able to represent the reality of the project environment reasonably well; however adjustments were required to cope with mixed-use redevelopment. The overall fate of the site was determined by the interplay of market forces and state policy, yet the detailed evolution of the project was dependent upon the organisations and individuals that became involved. Questions of design and the architect played an important role in decision making. ‘Place making’ was found to be fundamental in both planning and financial terms. It was confirmed that a genuine mixed-use environment that is well conceived and managed can be very attractive to the public, residents, businesses and investors. While some listed buildings were sacrificed, involving controversy and delay, conversions of others made a significant contribution both environmentally and financially. These results contribute to the literature of detailed property development cases while refining the model used.

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