City centre improvement scheme: £550,000 for Stage 1

19 June 2018

Aberdeen City Council’s City Growth and Resources Committee today awarded £550,000 for Stage 1 of a city centre improvement scheme.

The pavement will be enlarged outside Aberdeen Art Gallery and Cowdray Hall by reducing the carriageway width and continuing to allow two-way traffic to be maintained along Schoolhill.

The work will form Stage 1 of a comprehensive public realm upgrade for Schoolhill.

Councillor Marie Boulton, City Centre Masterplan spokeswoman, said: “These are exciting times for Aberdeen as we start to see an acceleration of plans in line with the City Centre Masterplan vision.

“The work approved today will enhance the setting for the Art Gallery, which is undergoing its own £30 million transformation.”

Stage 1 will be developed and procured through an in-house team, who will appoint contractors to undertake the works later in the year and for completion in early 2019.

The slip road outside Robert Gordon’s College (RGC) is being retained as part of Stage 1 with modification to the current carriageway geometry. Aberdeen City Council will work with RGC, as one of the key stakeholders, on maintaining safe and accessible routes to the school as the scheme is progressed.

Earlier this month the business case for the full Schoolhill scheme was approved by the Strategic Commissioning Committee and it is anticipated that a design will be brought forward later in the year.

The report (item 9.2) can be found here.