Locals had originally been excited about the prospect of new permanent neighbours, after developers S1 Developments obtained planning consent to turn the former Claremont Hotel, which closed in 2023, into permanent flats.
They have now described feeling “blindsided” and “duped” by the developers after plans, unveiled recently, were approved by the council’s planning committee.
S1 Developments, reacting to the news, said they are “delighted” at the news and emphasised the fact that this is a conversion from hotel use to short-term let use.
Claremont Crescent (pictured above), could now see an influx of short-term visitors (C) Google
The council voted to approve the conversion at a meeting of the Development Management Sub-Committee today.
Councillors emphasised the fact that the historical usage of the townhouse is as a hotel, and that the change of use is from commercial usage to commercial usage.
The Claremont Hotel forms part of a terrace on Claremont Crescent, a residential side-street in Canonmills.
Residents have been fighting against the STL since plans were outlined, saying that S1 Developments have u-turned after pledging to convert the hotel into permanent flats.
45 objections were lodged with the council regarding the plans, with a local MSP, the Cockburn Association – Edinburgh’s civic trust – and the New Town and Broughton Community Council all speaking out against the revised plans.
One resident, who did not want to be named said that he felt he and his neighbours had been “shafted” by the property developers.
He added: “I’m obviously very disappointed, we’ve been totally duped by S1.
“We all supported the original application, which would have brought more housing into the area – amid a housing emergency.
“My big frustration was what the planner presenting the application was saying – I couldn’t believe it.”
A council planning officer, who presented the application to the council, claimed at one point that the footfall of the STL flats would be lessened as there would no longer be a bar area.
The bar at the Claremont Hotel has not operated for ten years. The planning officer also claimed that the hotel consisted of just four floors, when the hotel actually has five.
The resident added that he felt councillors, as well as the planning officer, were ill-informed about the application and overworked.
He said that he and other residents were looking at steps they could take to appeal the decision, including a judicial review.
He added that he expected the developers to cut their losses sell the property soon after receiving planning consent due to the amount of money they had already sunk into it and the amount of time the planning process has taken.
“We just feel completely shafted, they do these conversions just to sell them on.”
S1 Developments
A spokesperson for S1 Developments said: “We are clearly delighted that planning permission has been granted, subject to conditions, for transforming what it should be remembered was already a hotel, The Claremont Hotel, into seven high-quality serviced apartments.
“These will provide flexible accommodation and be well-suited to Edinburgh’s business travellers and tourists, fully refurbishing the building and preserving the property’s historic features.
“The serviced apartments will host substantially fewer guests than when it operated as a hotel, thereby reducing impacts on residential amenity, and we look forward to engaging with the community as we progress the delivery of our apartments.”
The capacity of the hotel would be reduced from 50 people to 28 people under the new plans.
Previously, local MSP Ben MacPherson spoke out against plans, saying: “This proposed development seems at odds with the character of the neighbourhood and the clear need in the city for more, permanent housing for residents.
“I am sympathetic to concerns that my constituents have raised about these proposals, and that high density occupancy in commercial short-term lets could detrimentally impact the area, particularly the quality of life of those living on and around the street.”
The application was approved six votes to four.
Many councillors pointed out that, whatever they may feel about the application, the grounds for refusing the application were very thin, given the site’s historical use as a hotel.
Claremont Crescent was designed by William Burn, the architect of Edinburgh Academy and the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, and constructed in the 1820s.
Famous past residents include Sir Eduardo Paolozzi, the artist, and Stuart Sutcliffe, the “fifth Beatle”, while one property in the Crescent is said to have been a base for Arthur Scargill, the president of the NUM, during the 1984-85 miner’s strike.
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