Council bosses are demanding 24-hour security measures at Aberdeen’s Broadford Works following the latest spate of vandal attacks.
The plant’s owner Ian Suttie was served a dangerous building notice yesterday, calling for round-the-clock patrols and improvements at the site’s perimeters to deter trespassers.
Open lift shafts will also have to be blocked and warning signs put up on nearby streets.
If the measures are not implemented by June 29, the council itself will carry them out.
Councillor Ramsay Milne, convener of the planning development management committee, said the move was intended to address concerns about health and safety at the Broadford Works site and the deterioration of the buildings.
“The terms of the dangerous buildings notice should ensure that steps are taken as quickly as possible to make this site secure,” he said.
“There has been and continues to be a significant risk of serious injury and we want to do all we can to improve public safety.
“We are pleased that the site owner agreed to meet our building standards team today and is now co-operating fully with our requests to ensure the security of the perimeter of the site and the improvements required for public safety.”
The progress was welcomed by Aberdeen Central MSP Kevin Stewart last night.
He said: “I am pleased that the council has taken this action and I hope that the owner will respond immediately to secure the site and carry out the requirements of the notice.
“Beyond that, the owner must get on with developing the site so that local people do not have to put up with the incidents that have been happening there on an almost daily basis.”
Council officers will also meet fire chiefs to discuss preventative measures.
Mr Suttie has come under mounting pressure over the future of the Grade A-listed site, which has been targeted repeatedly by vandals in recent years.
The First Construction boss was given permission by the Scottish Government in 2013 to create a £50million “urban village” at Broadford Works with final agreement in place in September 2014.
However, no progress has been made on the development and calls are being made for him to start work – or sell the land on.