The final remnants of Aberdeen’s forgotten Shoe Lane could be demolished at a cost of £150,000 as the council revitalises Queen Street.
The 6 Shoe Lane cottage is the street’s last remaining building, having survived the demolition of the entire row amid slum clearances about 100 years ago.
Tucked away behind The Lemon Tree, historians reckon it dates back to the 18th century, and its “traditional character” means it has some significance.
Council regeneration masterminds have been told they will have to justify their plans to flatten it as they reimagine the area.
What happened to Shoe Lane in Aberdeen?
Aberdeen’s Shoe Lane was historically a burial ground, and a collection of coins from the 1500s were unearthed there in the 1840s.
This grey granite cottage at the heart of the new plans is thought to have been built around 1775.
Over the 19th century, it was home to cabinet maker William Tytler, plumber John Stephen and seaman Alexander Muckle.
In the 1920s, hundreds of “insanitary dwellings” were cleared in various narrow lanes including this one.
And it has survived the various changes in the area over the ensuing 100 years too.
But the building has now been vacant for about seven years, and the interior was recently stripped out.
In September, engineers were sent to inspect the structure, deeming it to be in overall “fair” condition.
However, they identified “notable diagonal cracking through the masonry walls”, some “defects” with the roof and a few leaks.
They said anyone looking to reuse the building would need to carry out these repairs.
Could it be brought back to life instead?
Before deciding on demolition as the best option, council chiefs looked into some other uses for the Shoe Lane cottage.
Experts from CBRE were consulted too, advising that there was low demand for a house like that without parking attached.
They also ruled out its chances as a shop, said it was too small for a cafe and confirmed that businesses are moving out of old granite buildings rather than into them these days.
What’s more, an office conversion would cost in the range of £350,000.
What are the Queen Street plans?
This area of Aberdeen, linking Broad Street and King Street, is soon to be reimagined.
Councillors have budgeted for the work to cost £16.8 million.
Arguing in favour of tearing down the cottage, officials say the surrounding Queen Street area has already seen some dramatic change over the past 50 years.
This, they add, means its “heritage merits” have already been damaged.
Papers add that a “substantial quantity” of historic buildings were cleared as the adjacent police HQ was built in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Shoe Lane granite would be reused in Aberdeen urban park project
Documents from Keppie Design say that granite from it could be used for feature walls, seating and raised planters as part of the project.
Papers add: “All the reusable granite and stone from the demolition of these buildings will be utilised within the urban park proposals.”
A building warrant indicates the demolition project would cost £150,000.
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Meanwhile, the former nursery attached at the rear, thought to have been built in the 1960s, would be knocked down as well.
The historians consulted about 6 Shoe Lane say this building is “considered to have no positive visual interest in the street-scene” and actually makes it look worse.
The plans will be decided in due course.
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