Multi-million-pound revamp plans for Aberdeen Beach could be shelved by cash-strapped council chiefs – throwing a new seaside Dons stadium into doubt.
A shock dossier going before councillors next week urges elected members to place the popular project on ice.
Finance chiefs say any work on the future of the seafront should be left in limbo “until additional resources can be identified” to pay for it.
A huge £150 million price-tag was agreed for the joint city centre and beach projects in 2021.
But the whole seaside scheme, including the potential new Dons stadium, could cost about £441m.
The regeneration project ultimately aims to “put Aberdeen back on the map as a tourist resort”.
But isn’t work already happening at the beach?
Preparations for the first phase of the beach revamp are taking place just now.
This will include futuristic new playparks, an ampitheatre being carved out next to the Beach Ballroom, new canopies and an eye-catching gateway building.
Broadhill will be improved under this first stage too, and new cycle lanes are being created.
All these initial works are priced at £61m.
However, it is the future phases of the hoped-for transformation that council moneymen want to see shelved.
What parts of the Aberdeen Beach Masterplan could be put on hold?
Phase two of the project focuses on other areas, immediately north and south of the current “phase one” zone.
This includes the idea of a new boardwalk stretching out across the shore from the Beach Boulevard to the new entrance of the Beach Ballroom.
A sheltered “safe swim zone” would be created in the sea beneath it.
Ultimately the council had hoped to extend the Aberdeen Beach Masterplan all the way from the mouth of the Don to Fittie under future phases.
Road plans also put on hold as Aberdeen Beach Masterplan delayed
Plans for a major roundabout upgrade at the top of Beach Boulevard have also been hit by the financial uncertainty.
Ultimately, the local authority wants to reclaim space on the stretch for pedestrians and cyclists.
Road capacity on the strip would be radically reduced from four lanes to two as part of a much larger scheme to limit traffic along the seafront.
But these changes will also now depend on the state of the council coffers in years to come.
What about the Dons stadium?
The new documents reveal that “discussions are continuing” with Aberdeen FC about the idea of building a new Dons stadium at the beach.
The proposed Pittodrie replacement was first suggested back in 2021.
And club chairman Dave Cormack has said his preference would be to abandon the Kingsford relocation in favour of remaining in the city.
But the latest update says that the new ground, and a replacement for the Beach Leisure Centre to be attached to it, should be “subject to future budget considerations”.
In October 2022, the new Dons stadium was priced up at £80m.
Could future of Aberdeen Beach Masterplan depend on new stadium?
Earlier this year Labour group leader M Tauqeer Malik claimed: “Without [it], any proposals contained within the beach masterplan will fail to deliver meaningful community benefit.
“The new football stadium is crucial for our city centre and beach masterplan.”
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What has been going on behind the scenes?
Last August, councillors voted to press ahead with plans for the future phases of the Aberdeen Beach Masterplan.
Since then, the report says, “considerable progress” has been made on “a number of
projects within the City Centre and Beach Masterplan”.
But officials have now calculated that the council doesn’t have the “resources required” to go any further with the seafront scheme.
At least not right now.
The report states: “It is recommended that preparation of the beach phase two development framework be paused until such time as an identified resource, and associated budget, can be identified.”
Finance convener says ‘it’s time to take stock’
The SNP and Lib Dem administration’s finance convener, Alex McLellan, said the council continues to plough “significant” sums into regeneration work.
He explained: “There are a number of projects being taken forward at this time.
“For example, the works that are now ongoing include Union Street, the market development and the first phase of the beach masterplan.
“There is significant capital investment from our local authority to transform our city in the coming years.”
‘The plans are still our end goal’
Mr McLellan continued: “The future phases (of the beach masterplan) will be decided at a future point.
“But given the financial constraints that the council has, and the challenges the council faces, I think its important that we take stock of where we are at.
“We really need to be seeing what other funds we could unlock to develop future phases, because it was never the intention that the council would deliver the entire beach and city centre masterplans.”
The SNP finance chief added that these projects were “always going to require external funding, whether that be from the private sector or from government”.
He said: “The plans are our aspiration and our end goal, and we will continue to work towards them, but we will need to unlock additional resources to get to that point.”
The future phases of the Aberdeen Beach Masterplan will be decided by councillors at a meeting on Wednesday, August 21.
Costs revealed as Aberdeen’s big-spending beach bonanza begins
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