Civic Trust deplores "sorry story" of Jedburgh eyesore

by EWAN LAMB

The Scottish Civic Trust has conceded that time has run out for a once iconic baronial style building in Jedburgh town centre which now faces demolition following "neglectful ownership".

The 19th Centure property at 2 High Street has been shrouded in scaffolding for several years although it has featured in Visit Scotland literature advertising the Borders town to tourists.

Scottish Borders Council is seeking Listed Building Consent (LBC) to demolish the structure, said to be in a dangerous state and riddled with dry rot. But there have already been objections to the council application with claims demolition would create a dangerous precedent.

In a submission to the planning authority, Dr Susan O'Connor, director of the Scottish Civic Trust, writes: "This is a sorry story of of inaction by neglectful ownership of an important building in the townscape of central Jedburgh, and the apparent inability of your council to overcome the ensuing problems.

"Having studied the background information and professional reports we agree with the conclusion that the time for encouraging its repair and restoration has now run out. It is clear to us that your council has behaved responsibly in the circumstances and we welcome the prospect of an architectural competition for a replacement building".

However, the trust's views are certainly not shared by objector Merlin Lewis, from Lilliesleaf, who has lodged an objection against the granting of consent to demolish.

Mr Lewis states: "Allowing this building to be lost would be a huge oversight and an irresponsible course of action, and its protection would be of great value to the town. There is also an economic case for protecting this building.

"Not only does tourism (and its vital associated revenue) revolve around the history and heritage of built Jedburgh, but there are ever increasing examples of sites such as this becoming desirable spaces when restored to a high standard and marketed in a way that presents their history and character as a premium asset. We have seen success for buildings like this in larger towns and cities, and there is no reason to believe that with care and forward thinking such a direction would not be successful in Jedburgh. This is an opportunity to prevent a part of Jedburgh's history from being completely wasted, and to recognise the economic potential of such a building before it is too late."

He goes on to cite the case of another High Street property - number 31 - which was pulled down several years ago with the site still awaiting redevelopment.

Mr Lewis says: "The story of 31 High Street, provides a disappointing example of a failed experiment in removing core parts of Jedburgh's architectural heritage. The existence of a more important and significant building now lies in the balance and I consider it absolutely crucial that the application to demolish said building is refused.

"To demolish it would set an unfortunate precedent, paving the way for the demolition of similar building in the future; the Council would find it difficult to reject a proposal for another demolition if it allowed this one to go ahead. At that point, Jedburgh faces a huge risk to its celebrated character and landscape. The loss of such an impressive and irreplaceable building in the centre of Jedburgh would be hugely regrettable."

Douglas Hunter, another objector, claims in his written comments that demolition should be a very last resort in a conservation area.

He adds: "Several years ago, in response to impatient complaints about scaffolding, an early 19th Century building at 31 High Street was pulled down and replaced with a very unconvincing canvas and steel 'Wendy House'. Prior to this Jedburgh High Street's buildings had survived remarkably unchanged for a century. What had been dubbed an 'eyesore' had become a 'sore thumb'..

A council report in support of the LBC application explains: "The property was designed by Clarke and Bell of Glasgow in Scots baronial style and built in 1866.

"Once direct action had commenced and a full scaffold erected it became clear that the stonework was in worse condition than originally identified and water penetration both to the front and rear had caused serious dry rot outbreaks which was largely concealed by internal finishes. The owners of the building had all vacated their properties effectively leaving the council to proceed with the necessary works in line with the formal notices that had been served.

"Work commenced on adjusting the scaffold to allow the works proposed to be undertaken – which had been initially limited to the installation of numerous tie rods linking the floors to the external wall. but it was then found that further movement of the gable had occurred resulting in additional scaffolding having to be erected to provide bracing, including counterweights which resulted in temporary road closures and the introduction of a one way system.

"The building has now deteriorated to such a condition that extensive external and internal scaffold bracing has had to be installed to protect the public from danger. In addition the nature and location of the bracing has resulted in the need to install a temporary traffic management system. This scaffolding and the associated traffic diversion and signage impacts significantly on the High Street and Market Square in particular and Jedburgh town centre in general.

"The property currently remains in the ownership of the individual proprietors; whilst there are five individual properties, the numbers of actual property owners is actually fifteen. Marketing the building is simply not a realistic proposition, given the conservation deficit identified."