Revealed: Why St Giles Centre car park in Elgin has been partially closed for two years

Moray Council has revealed the safety concerns that have caused four floors of the St Giles Centre car park to be closed for two years.

The multi-storey was partially shut in January 2022 on “public safety grounds”.

Gates, railings and wooden boards have been put up to prevent access to the upper floors.

However, details about why nearly 200 spaces have been closed have not gone beyond “public safety grounds”.

Now Moray Council has revealed why four floors of the St Giles Centre are shut after being asked to review a freedom of information request from the Press and Journal, which was initially rejected.

Why is St Giles Centre car park closed?

Moray Council has confirmed “defects” were detected in the upper floors of the St Giles Centre car park during a routine inspection in 2020, two years before they were closed.

A specialist assessment was then ordered, which found that deck slabs on levels three to six are no longer strong enough.

A statement from Moray Council described the issue as the floors no longer having “sufficient capacity to carry normal vehicle loading”.

The bottom two floors are both at ground level, meaning they do not rely on deck slabs for support.

It is understood the issue was first spotted when cracks appeared in the building’s concrete columns.

The closure has meant no step-free access for wheelchair users from the levels that remain open to the shopping centre.

Moray Council declined to published further details about the safety concerns, explaining they would “prejudice substantially commercial interests”.

Future plans for car park

Moray Council has already ruled out repairs to the car park due to them not being “value for money”.

However, the local authority has refused to publish figures about how much the work would cost.

During a meeting held in private in early 2022 councillors called for options to be drawn up for the future use of the site.

However, no proposals have been tabled to date.

Moray Council has stressed the stairwell to the upper floors remains open to provide a fire escape from the shopping centre.

The local authority has also explained there remains sufficient capacity in the remaining car parks in the town and the condition of the St Giles Centre multi-storey remains monitored with regular inspections.