Council / Council has received nearly £5m through property and land sales in last decade
SHETLAND Islands Council has taken in nearly £5 million through property and land sales in the last decade, latest figures show.
The highest sale during this period was a site at Fogralea in Lerwick for £250,000 in 2016.
The figures also include the £1 community asset transfer of the science block at the former Anderson High School to the New Life Shetland church earlier this year.
The asset transfer of the old Bressay school to the local community development group was for £1, while the former Nesting school was transferred to the community for nothing.
A total of £4.87 million has been received by the council since 2013 through property and land sales.
The most recent was the sale of the ‘Brewick Shed’ last month at a cost of £48,000.
Other high priced sales include Lerwick’s Leog House (£238,000), Quendale House (£230,000) and the Viking Bus Station building (£220,000).
The council also sold Viewforth House in Lerwick, which could be turned into flats, for £175,000.
Some of the sales undertaken so far this year include the Easterdale Pier in Burra to East Voe Shellfish, and land at the marts to the Shetland Livestock Marketing Group.
The council meanwhile received nearly £27,000 for a lodberry in Lerwick which was sold to Ocean Kinetics in 2020.
The figures also show that the Northmavine Community Development Company paid the council £500 for the recycling site at the Ollaberry/Hillswick junction.
The figures also highlight how the council gives land to Hjaltland Housing Association at no cost for development, including on Lerwick’s King Harald Street and Staneyhill.
Shetland Islands Council chief executive Maggie Sandison said the local authority brought forward a revised property asset management strategy (PAMS) about a year ago.
She added that the council is keen to reduce its footprint, and with net zero requirements there is a need to improve and upgrade buildings across the estate.
“The first question you start from is: ‘do we need these buildings rather than investing in them?’” Sandison said.
“We continue to revisit how much office space is required, particularly after Covid, and the move to a more hybrid working arrangement.”
For instance there is suggestion that Hayfield House in Lerwick, which is currently used as the headquarters for children’s services, could potentially be used for a housing development in future years.
Regarding the asset transfer of the science block at the former Anderson school site, New Life Shetland pastor John Rollo said that as the renovation will be a long-term project, “it’ll be a while before the building is used as per our plans”.
“We’re currently working our way through the stages of this,” he said.
The transfer of the building to the church was subject to a planning wrangle – with the Scottish Government ruling that no change of use consent was ever needed.
The transfer of the building to the church was subject to a planning wrangle – with the Scottish Government ruling that no change of use consent was ever needed.
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