A fire-damaged eyesore in Inverness city centre should be reinstated by the end of next year if new building plans are approved.
Proposals have just been lodged for work to restore the old Eastgate Hostel building to its former state.
It was seriously damaged by a blaze in April 2013 and scaffolding and hoardings have surrounded the property ever since.
But the new proposal involves dismantling and rebuilding the property’s frontage to allow a complete restoration from the new foundations upwards.
A Chinese takeaway and another retail unit will go in on the ground floor as before and the floors above will retain residential use – but it is unclear whether these will converted into flats or a hostel.
Iain Sibbald, chartered surveyor on the project, said: “We will have the building warrant application to do after we gain planning permission but we are hoping to be on site during spring 2017. “Construction will take about five to six months.”
Earlier plans to install a new roof and then add internal support structures to achieve a faster rebuild were dashed when engineering experts found the old building’s construction could not withstand the load.
Construction choices were also constrained by the building’s location, facing onto the Eastgate pedestrian precinct and backing on to a steep hillside.
Now, a steel frame will go in to support its roof, five floor levels and the rebuilt facade, resulting in a similar replacement building.
Majority owner, local businessman Imtaiz Ali, said: “We been working very closely with a range of third-party authorities and experts, including Highland Council’s planners, building control, independent construction engineers and the city centre conservation office, and have managed to find a safe and visually attractive way forward that we will progress as soon as we have permissions and warrants in place.”
“Apart from the physical issues, we are addressing all the challenges alongside two other owners of parts of the premises, which involves ongoing dialogues with three insurance companies and their loss adjusters.”
More than 50 residents were evacuated from the four-storey building when the fire took hold around 5.15am on April3.
The 51 backpackers and three staff escaped injury but many fled into the street in their nightclothes, leaving their belongings, including passports, behind.