@andywightman
Disgraceful decision by @ScotGovPlanning overturning clear recommendation for refusal by reporter. Jim Telfer, the smallholder, faces eviction to build this & is in court defending his rights. I stand with Jim & his family
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » General Edinburgh
"Scottish Government asked to rule on Straiton film studio"
(53 posts)-
Posted 6 years ago #
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Developers must feel confident if they can get any proposal to the Scottish govt.mit will be approved. I wonder if appeals over refusals going to this level are now just part of the process. Why bother having a reporter?
There already is a film studio in the pentlands at La Mancha, the gateway studio off leith walk etc.
BBC went for clydeside site.
Farmland cheap and near the bypass but greenbelt is there for a reason, not just an inconvenience for developers to get round by going to scot gov.
Thank goodness formAndy WightmanPosted 6 years ago # -
Apart from the Green Belt aspect, does Scotland need another film studio?
Presumably those behind this one want (and see a need/demand for) more capacity - and one they can own/play with.
BUT, SG is heavily involved. This is (should be, partly) about industry and perhaps development, so why not expand “Scotland's Only Fully Integrated Studio” (https://www.wardparkstudios.co.uk) [Outlander] or http://www.bbc.co.uk/corporate2/scotland/productionfacilities/studios/dumbarton.html [River City] or somewhere new - perhaps in Scotland’s fastest growing city (Inverness)?
Posted 6 years ago # -
Maybe we do need more film studios? Or maybe it will become hotels, houses and shops.?
Posted 6 years ago # -
Every time I hear about greenbelt commercial development like this my mind drifts to the story of the Wallyford race track
Posted 6 years ago # -
@gembo: The more I think about this the more I form a suspicion that this is more about building yet more retail space in Straiton, rather than a film studio. My understanding is that the developer may face some unusual legal difficulties in acquiring ownership of the farmland on which the film studio is supposedly going to built, whereas the land earmarked for retail space - which would be sited directly opposite IKEA - is currently lying derelict and may even already be owned by the developer. Could the flim-flam about the film studio be a trojan horse for retail development which wouldn't otherwise be allowed (at least not fronting on to Pentland Road)?
Posted 6 years ago # -
@ejstubbs, you are on the money here. Film studios are a patina obfuscating reality
Posted 6 years ago # -
"The application to evict Jim Telfer from his smallholding has been refused by the Scottish Land Court."
Posted 5 years ago # -
Hoo-flippin'-ray!
Whoever - apart from the greedy landowner - thought that the best place to put a film studio was on a greenfield site anyway? It would seem to be the sort of establishment which is ideally suited for a brownfield site.
Maybe now the developers will bite the bullet and submit an honest application for the retail development alone, on the brownfield land opposite IKEA. I'd almost say that it's needed: Straiton is already noticeably busier on account of the Limekilns development on the other side of the bypass, and the one adjacent to the Straiton Pond LNR. It won't be long before the one on the west side of Burdiehouse Road starts to be occupied with yet more eager shoppers. Better that all those new consumers have somewhere reasonably local to spend their money in some comfort rather than feeling it preferable to head further afield to get away from the crowds for their chicken twizzlers and flat pack wardrobes.
Now, if the cycling infrastructure around there was brought up to a decent standard, more than a motivated minority of them might even be happy to go to the shops by bike...
Posted 5 years ago # -
Andy Wightman asking why the developers thought it reasonable to evict the tenant whose family farmed there since 1915?
Good question
Posted 5 years ago # -
Apparently the estate has 28 days in which to lodge an appeal at the Court of Session. This may not be over yet :(
Posted 5 years ago # -
Yeah but Court of Session is not Scottish Govt and does not need to do their bidding.
Posted 5 years ago # -
Indeed, and although the Land Court's judgement impacts the planning application it's based on landlord and tenant law, not planning law. Nonetheless, the appeal still gives lawyers another chance to construct a convoluted argument which might just succeed.
A propos of which: how are Mr Telfer's legal costs being met - is there an online campaign fund to which one might contribute?
Posted 5 years ago # -
Interesting. Does this mean that great and good of the film and TV industry in Scotland have lost interest in the Straiton plan? (I have to admit that would give me great pleasure if the Straiton plan gets consigned to history's stinky dustbin of rotten ideas. I have no objection to something useful being done with the truly derelict land opposite Ikea, though. Straiton has long since passed the point where it became a consumerist hellhole - and all the lucky people living in the new ticky-tacky houses either side of Burdiehouse Road have to have somewhere to go and release their pent-up spending desires, after all.)
Posted 5 years ago # -
"all the lucky people living in the new ticky-tacky houses either side of Burdiehouse Road have to have somewhere to go and release their pent-up spending desires, after all.)"
There's that there internet thingy. Apparently quite popular. His nibs at Sports Direct reckons it's so popular killing the high street retailers.
Posted 5 years ago # -
Plan is now to build it north east of Dalkeith: https://variety.com/2019/tv/global/major-scottish-film-and-tv-studio-near-edinburgh-in-the-works-1203102851/
NCN 1 currently goes right through the middle of that site.
Posted 5 years ago # -
That land, like so much other land, is controlled by Mr Richard Scott.
The vehicle through which this control is exercised will become much richer if the deal goes ahead. Perhaps the vehicle will award some of the riches to Mr Scott?
Not bad for the descendant of a sixteenth century cow thief.
Posted 5 years ago # -
How many people aren't the descendant of a 16th century cow thief?
Posted 5 years ago # -
Building it right next to a road junction on the new Dalkeith Bypass (A68).
And optimistically quoting 20mins journey time from the airport.
A perfect example of a new road inducing demand on not only the new road, but the city-bypass, the A8 and the airport access road as well.
Perhaps they could have sited it next to one of the Borders Line railway stations instead e.g. Shawfair, but no, that would be like, common sense.
Posted 5 years ago # -
@Frenchy
There's selection bias I suppose given that cow thieving was a hanging matter. My ancestors aspired to cow thieving but never got beyond fish rustling.
Posted 5 years ago # -
YEs, the descendant of (cow thieves who used the predecessors of Alex Salmond's defence team) to get off with the hanging to enable genes to go into next generation?
Posted 5 years ago # -
My ancestors were quite prodigious cattle thieves (allegedly)
Posted 5 years ago #
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