New Life for Gardyne's Land - update
The ambitious project to breathe new life into one of Dundee's oldest buildings is well on course, says project leader Neil Grieve, of the school of town and regional planning.
Neil is chief executive of the Tayside Building Preservation Trust (TBPT) which has embarked on the £3.2 million plan to renovate the historic Gardyne's Land into a youth hostel.
He said, "The oldest part of Gardyne's Land dates back more than 400 years and it is historic buildings such as these which form the anchor or identity of a town. It would be a tragedy to lose that major part of Dundee's heritage so we are trying to impress on local business and national charities and funding bodies the importance of restoring it and giving it a modern-day use.
"The initial work to make the buildings wind and water-tight has now been completed and the next stage is to fully restore the buildings and convert them into a youth hostel. We hope sufficient funds will be raised to allow us to begin fully restoring the buildings the end of next year."
Gardyne's Land is a generic term for three buildings which group around a courtyard in the centre of Dundee. Two of the buildings face onto the high street, one is a tenement of c1640, the other is a Victorian retail outlet of c 1870, with accommodation above, which incorporates fabric from an earlier building. To the rear is a Merchant's House of c1560, whose first owner was John Gardyne, who has given his name to the complex.
Following a major 1996 feasibility study, the TBPT began the process of renovating the buildings - no small task, since some of them had lain empty for more than 40 years.
It was decided to develop Gardyne's Land as a youth hostel since Dundee lacks one at the moment and the major funding bodies, which include Historic Scotland and the Heritage Lottery Fund, will only fund the restoration of a building with a sustainable use. The Scottish Youth Hostel Association has pledged to buy the completed premises.
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