Plans to demolish and replace the Brunton Theatre in Musselburgh move forward.
Plans to destroy and replace Musselburgh’s Brunton Theatre have moved forward, barely months after a bid to save the structure failed.
East Lothian Council has asked its own planners for a decision on whether it needed to conduct assessments before demolishing the property.
The relocation is the first step in lodging plans to demolish the hall and replace it with a new community and cultural center.
According to their request, the council intends to “replace the Brunton hall, including the full demolition of the existing building and rebuilding to provide facilities for the arts and potential commercial redevelopment of the remaining land.”
The Brunton has been shuttered for more than a year after the discovery of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) in its roof, with the cost of repair deemed financially prohibitive.
The local administration is looking for business partners to help them renovate the site; however, last year, protestors petitioned Historic Environment Scotland (HES) to list the structure in order to prevent its demolition.
HES initiated an investigation into whether the brutalist building, which was inaugurated by the late Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, in 1971, should be listed, but in November they determined that while it was ‘of outstanding significance’, development plans were too far along for them to interfere.
Now that the council has requested a scoping opinion, they can forward with replacing it.
A council spokeswoman stated, “A request has been made to the planning authority to certify that an Environmental Impact Assessment is not necessary for the destruction of the present building.
That request is now being reviewed, and a formal response will be provided in due time.
“We have been working to ensure artistic accommodation in Musselburgh and to seek funding options for a successor of the Brunton Hall.
“A preliminary market consultation (PMC) has been conducted to identify suppliers, funders, or developers capable of building a new facility. We look forward to sharing additional information about the next steps in due time.”
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