Housing / Work nearly complete on eight rebuilt Sandveien council houses
Around 160 other Sandveien homes have also had upgrades, such as new kitchens, bathrooms and heating systems
EIGHT rebuilt council houses in Lerwick are nearing completion, with tenants set to receive keys in the coming weeks.
Work has been going since March 2023 to demolish and rebuild the properties at Sandveien.
Local firm DITT was given the £2.5 million contract, which includes just over £700,000 of Scottish Government ‘More Homes’ funding.
The project represents the first major housing contract to be awarded by Shetland Islands Council in many years.
In addition to the new build properties, around 160 council properties in Sandveien have also had upgrades with replacement kitchens and bathrooms fitted, and new heating systems installed.
The local media was given a tour of the rebuilt properties, which have a 28 per cent larger footprint than the previous properties, on Wednesday.
From first glance they add extra colour to the Sandveien estate overlooking South Road.
The eight properties – originally built in the 1970s along with the rest of the estate – had been selected for demolition not because of their age, but due to their structural condition.
One adjoining property on the west side has remained as is because it is a relatively new house.
Inside, the rebuilt homes – six two bedroom and two three bedroom – have been developed with a “fabric first approach” with high levels of insulation and a design which limits air leakage, reducing both heat loss and heating demand.
The council said the addition of whole house mechanical ventilation and heat recovery ensures “good air quality throughout the dwellings and further reduces heat loss”.
There are high heat retention storage heaters which are supplemented by solar panels on the roof, and toilets on both floors.
Larger windows help to bring in more natural light, and with the layout flipped from before tenants will be able to enjoy a fine view over the Clickimin Loch.
SIC development director Neil Grant confirmed the project was on time and on budget.
He also said the council’s wider refurbishment programme across Shetland, which includes the 160 Sandveien homes and many more elsewhere over the last couple of years, is important too.
“You don’t often hear much about that, but it makes such a big difference to houses doing those upgrades,” Grant said.
The eight new build properties plus the maintenance work on the 160 other homes has resulted in a total investment in Sandveien of around £4.3 million.
Housing manager Anita Jamieson said some of the tenants in the old properties will be moving back in, but some had chosen to stay elsewhere after making way for the demolition.
She hailed the energy efficiency of the properties as well as the improved space and light.
“The kitchen size is something that’s been a bit of a bug bear in some of the original Sandveien properties,” Jamieson said.
“Having a kitchen that is big enough for a table and chairs is really important. I just hope that the families are as impressed as I am.”
She added that the council’s housing waiting list is around 660 in total, although that figure includes homeless applications and transfers.
Chairman of the SIC’s development committee chairman Dennis Leask, whose Lerwick South ward includes Sandveien, said it was a big project but added that there also needs to be recognition of the hundreds of other homes in Shetland benefitting from rolling maintenance.
This includes work for example on kitchens, bathrooms and windows.
The councillor added that funding for these jobs comes out of the “tenants’ pockets” through their rent payments.
“That’s why every year when it comes to debating if we should put up rents or not, we have to keep abreast of inflation or we won’t be able to take on projects like this in the future,” Leask said.
“You never catch up on that once you start setting zero inflation rates.
“But that came out of the feedback we got from tenants. There was a general acceptance that we need that money to pay for these types of projects.”
The Lerwick South councillor also acknowledged that the demolition and rebuild of the eight properties will have been an inconvenience for the tenants, and he praised their cooperation in the process.
“From a management point of view, it’s not always that easy to coordinate empty houses to decant people in when you’re doing a bigger project like this.
“So I think we have to recognise the part they [the tenants] played.”
But he said that does not detract from the work which has been undertaken.
“The quality of these houses is awesome,” Leask said.
“The insulation is amazing, triple glazing in the windows, amazing views, greater floor space – that’s down to good architecture.
“And everything has been done with local contractors. It is a local project.”
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