What can be saved from the Princes St fire?
Devastating blaze leaves plans for city’s biggest hotel in doubt
Safety inspectors to decide fate of remains of historic former Debenhams building
Structural engineers are assessing whether any of the former Debenhams building on Princes Street can be saved following devastating damage in last week’s fire.
The two upper floors of the five-storey B-listed Victorian building will have to be removed immediately for safety reasons, with fears the rest of the facade and remaining gable wall may also be too unstable to save.
With the site now likely to sit empty for years while new plans are agreed for its development, conservation groups - including Edinburgh World Heritage, the Cockburn Association and the Scottish Civic Trust - are calling for every effort to be made to save what remains of the building’s facade and historic interior.
Work had been due to start on converting the site into Edinburgh’s largest hotel. Controversial property billionaire Asif Aziz had secured planning permission through his development company Criterion Capital for Scotland’s first Zedwell hotel, with 652 rooms, a mixture of windowless ‘sleeping pods’ and regular bedrooms.
The fire: At its peak, 50 firefighters tackled the blaze, after being called out shortly before 3am on Thursday. No one was injured and the cause of the fire is under investigation.
History lost? Opened as the Palace Hotel in 1869, 109-111 later served as the magnificent home of the Scottish Liberal Club, before becoming Debenhams with River Island and Levis shops on the ground floor. Beautiful stained glass windows, grand wooden staircases and the club’s wood panelled and ornately decorated Gladstone Memorial are among the historic features feared destroyed. A bust of the former Prime Minister William Gladstone survived the blaze having previously been removed for storage.
What next? The first job will be securing the safety of the site, then thoughts will turn to its future. The extent of the damage means the Zedwell plans is almost certainly impossible to deliver in its current form. New proposals will need to be drawn up and agreed. Experience suggests the process is likely to take years rather than months.
Two hotel plans hit: The fire means work cannot temporarily take place on the neighbouring site, where demolition had already been carried out to make way for a £100 million, 247-bedroom Ruby Hotel.
Will Aziz walk away? There are suggestions the disruption to the existing Zedwell hotel plans may convince Aziz to sell the site rather than pursue fresh plans. Previous development proposals were pulled in 2023, when then owners Legal & General decided against pursuing its own hotel and restaurant plan and sold up instead. Criterion Capital has simply said ensuring safety is its current priority, adding: “This building is an important and historic part of Edinburgh’s city centre, and we continue to liaise with the emergency services and relevant authorities.”
Fire risk review call: Last week’s was at least the third blaze on Princes St in the last five years. That comes alongside a series of major fires in historic buildings in Glasgow. Edinburgh World Heritage is now calling for a review of the fire risk in the city’s historic buildings. There was a blaze at 112 Princes St, nextdoor to the latest fire site and another part of the old Debenhams store, in 2021, as well as one in which firefighter Barry Martin was killed in the Jenners building in 2023.
YOUR EDINBURGH BRIEFING
ANTIQUE STAR: Tributes have been paid to Antiques Roadshow expert Theo Burrell following her death from a brain tumour at the age of 39. Burrell, who worked for Lyon and Turnbull auctioneers in Edinburgh and lived near Longniddry, became a popular member of the BBC show after joining its team as an on-screen valuer in 2018. A statement from her family said: “She was an incredible person who fought hard for her family, friends and raising awareness of this cruel disease.”
SPARK STATUE: Award-winning sculptor and photographer Jacqueline Donachie has been chosen to create a permanent memorial to Dame Muriel Spark in Princes Street Gardens. The Glasgow-based artist’s winning design features a series of curved terrazzo forms with steps and seating areas that encourage visitors to pause and reflect on Spark’s legacy. Spark is widely regarded as one of the greatest novelists of the last century and the memorial will be the first in the gardens dedicated to a woman.
BLACKFORD HILL WILDFIRE: Firefighters tackled a wildfire on Blackford Hill near the Royal Observatory as temperatures rose to 25C on Friday evening. Two fire crews extinguished the fire with no injuries reported.
FOGGY GOLF: South Korean Tim Kim shed tears of joy as he won the Genesis Scottish Open after play was stopped by thick fog in North Berwick on Saturday. Kim beat a strong field including Bob McIntyre and Rory McIlory at the Renaissance Club course.
POLICE STOP: Right-wing YouTuber Craig Houston has been stopped by police at Edinburgh Airport under anti-terror laws. Police Scotland have confirmed the 53-year-old has not been arrested or charged but said that his electronic devices have been seized and inquiries are ongoing.
STABBING INCIDENT: A 33-year-old man is expected to appear at Edinburgh Sheriff Court today in connection with an alleged stabbing in Loanhead at the weekend. A 21-year-old man had to be taken to hospital after the incident in the High Street area on Friday evening.
DOCTORATE FOR GLENN: Edinburgh Napier University has awarded an honorary doctorate to BBC Scotland political editor Glenn Campbell. The award recognizes his work in journalism and for raising awareness and funds for brain cancer research. Mr Campbell was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2023.
BRIDGE WORK: Network Rail is set to begin a £1.3m project to renew a rail bridge over Westfield Road in the west of Edinburgh. To carry out this work safely, a series of overnight lane closures will be in place on Westfield Road between 8 August and 9 October, with a full road closure in place from 8-18 September. You are encouraged to plan ahead and take extra time when travelling through the area.
ART MAP: The Edinburgh Art Map initiative is being launched to promote visual arts events and exhibitions across the capital to a wider audience. Hosted by the Embassy gallery in Leith, and following the model of the Glasgow Art Map, it will post weekly website event listings and social media updates. Art lovers are invited to support the initiative through a crowdfunder appeal.
Pic of the week
THE BUSINESS
Arena delays push opening back
The developers of a new 8500-capacity arena at Edinburgh Park in the west of the city have stressed they “remain committed” to delivering a project.
It emerged last week that the project has been delayed due to the inability to secure a contractor and rising supply chain costs. Permission for the venue was granted two years ago, and it was expected that the first events would be staged in 2027.
That now appears less likely. Targets had already slipped by a year, and further extensions now seem probable.
Alistair Wood, executive vice president for real estate and development at AEG International, which is behind the project, said: “We remain committed to delivering the Edinburgh Park Arena and continue to make progress behind the scenes as we work through the next phase of the project
“As with any major development of this scale, timelines are kept under regular review as design, procurement and commercial discussions continue.
Proposed-AEG-arena-in-Edinburgh.
“We are particularly focused on securing a main contractor and supply chain, which remain a challenge in Scotland at the current time.”
PROJECT MILESTONE: Edinburgh’s biggest single-site student accommodation project has hit a milestone in its development. Design and build contractor McAleer & Rushe marked the “topping out” of Mantle Yard, a 604-bed Purpose-Built Student Accommodation development on Baltic Street in Leith.
OFFICE DEMAND: Demand for high-quality office space is outstripping supply in Edinburgh. A new market report from Lambert Smith Hampton, with Ryden providing analysis for Scotland, reveals occupier demand is driving rental growth. Take-up reached 118,760 sq ft in the first quarter of the year, the strongest since the final quarter of 2024. Prime rents increased by 6.7% year-on-year to £48 per sq ft.
THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT
STONE ME: The European Stone Stacking Championship returns to Dunbar on Saturday and Sunday. The championships mark the culmination of a week of events at the European Land Art Festivals which gets underway tomorrow.
ALL THAT JAZZ: The Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival brings world-class performers to the capital for 10 days from Friday. Enjoy a taste of New Orleans in the Grassmarket on Saturday with three live music stages throughout the afternoon.
FESTIVAL CARNIVAL: Still looking for more of the Festival spirit? More than 1,000 festival performers will parade down the Mound to the west end of Princes Street, followed by an afternoon of entertainment in the gardens, when the Edinburgh Festival Carnival returns on Sunday.
BLOCK PARTY: Discover some of Britain’s best new bands when the Cowgate Block Party returns to Sneaky Pete’s and the Mash House on Saturday.
QUICK BITES
BLACKBIRD BACK: Popular neighbourhood cocktail bar The Blackbird on Leven Street in Tollcross is to reopen later this month following a six-figure interior makeover, in time for this year’s Fringe Festival. The work is to give the venue a contemporary new look, with further developments planned later in the year.
AMERICANA LANDS: Airport hospitality specialists TRGC has brought new dining concept to passengers at Edinburgh Airport. Forth and Main diner represents a fusion of Scottish and American hospitality, and is open from breakfast to last flight of the day.