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Leith Walk backcourt set for student housing infill

November 17 2016

Leith Walk backcourt set for student housing infill
Kenneth Reid Architects have prepared proposals for 58 studio flats on the site of a former warehouse off Leith Walk, Edinburgh, in a sign of unfinished appetite for student housing amongst developers.

The backcourt project is remote from university campuses in the city but despite this the developers are confident of attracting tenants owing to the central locale.

Accessible by way of a vennel off Leith Walk the property will sit in front of its own entrance courtyard nestled behind a perimeter of historic tenement blocks and a modern housing estate.

An imposing boundary wall currently in-situ will be harnessed to mask a relatively large ground floor footprint which will include break-out areas, a laundry, bike store and reception before reducing in the floors above, which step in deference to neighbours.

The architects stated: “The SE elevation has two angled projections which allow additional studios to be accommodated while minimising the effect of the overall volume and re-enforcing the courtyard effect.

“The central glass strip which marks the circulation ‘spine’ divides the volume still further. The massing of the building down the centre of the site gives plenty of amenity space around the building with a single storey glazed vestibule protruding orientated towards the entrance to the site.”

Ground floor elevations will be faced in engineering-style blue brick with coloured rainscreen cladding used in the floors above.
Flats will be faced in alternating grey and yellow rainscreen panels
Flats will be faced in alternating grey and yellow rainscreen panels

10 Comments

Tenement
#1 Posted by Tenement on 17 Nov 2016 at 13:16 PM
OMG!
basho
#2 Posted by basho on 17 Nov 2016 at 13:26 PM
I love Kenneth Reid Architects. They're so wonderfully ironic and retro! (I hope)
boaby wan
#3 Posted by boaby wan on 18 Nov 2016 at 09:51 AM
I'm pretty sure I designed this scheme in 2nd year (15 years ago)
Just hope they can get around the detailing issues I encountered...
Terra
#4 Posted by Terra on 18 Nov 2016 at 09:54 AM
I can't help but laugh at this. Good god. By all means fill up the gaps down in Leith but...well they could at least change the colour scheme. Gaudy doesn't quite cover it.
Inahuf
#5 Posted by Inahuf on 18 Nov 2016 at 18:38 PM
Orange lodge? hmmmm
Bunk
#6 Posted by Bunk on 19 Nov 2016 at 14:09 PM
Rank.
Sven
#7 Posted by Sven on 19 Nov 2016 at 18:54 PM
May I have the orange and white 8 point lego blocks after this tesm has finished with them.
modernish
#8 Posted by modernish on 21 Nov 2016 at 14:42 PM
@#3 - I hope they can sort the details (and massing, materiality etc etc) sorted out too Boaby...but by the looks of the 'glazed roof' of top floor corridor, they've got a long way to go!...I dare say you had a similar 'magic' roof in second year too?
E=mc2
#9 Posted by E=mc2 on 21 Nov 2016 at 15:19 PM
Oh dear God. What we need is a big red Britain's Got Talent like button for consigning rubbish like this to the bin before a spade goes in the ground
Cateran
#10 Posted by Cateran on 22 Nov 2016 at 22:26 PM
After seven years you come up with this? Whatever happened to imagination and skill? Ticky, tacky - ach it's only students and it's hidden behind Leith Walk.

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