Midsteeple Quarter are pleased to announce a step forward for the regeneration of Dumfries High Street, with the redevelopment work of ‘The Oven’ (135-139 High Street) which commenced on Monday 8th March.
The Oven is the first in a group of underused buildings on Dumfries High Street which Midsteeple Quarter have identified as a site for their bold initiative to see local people developing their own High Street as a contemporary living, working, socialising, learning and enterprising hub – a new vision of Dumfries town centre based on local views and aspirations. The former Baker’s Oven building was transferred into community ownership through the Midsteeple Quarter Project in November 2018. Since taking ownership of the building, Midsteeple Quarter have updated the ground floor space which has been used as a space for events, pop-up activities, exhibitions and workshops, used by local organisations including Spring Fling, D-LUX Festival of Light and The Stove Network.
Scott Mackay, manager of Midsteeple Quarter commented: “A lot of work has gone into getting to this stage. We are grateful to the funders and stakeholders who continue to support this endeavour, which would not be possible without the active involvement of the people of Dumfries over many years. This has formed a vision for the future of the Midsteeple Quarter and specifically for the redevelopment of the Baker’s Oven building and we are thrilled to see this vision now become a reality.”
In August 2020, Midsteeple Quarter announced planning permission and conservation area consent had been granted for the redevelopment of The Oven. The plans will see the site developed into seven new flats which will be available at affordable rents, one of which will be an artistic residency studio/flat. The street level space will be used as an enterprise space for start-up businesses and social enterprise, as well as continuing to support the community enterprise sector locally.
The existing façade of the building will be retained as an important element of the character of the Dumfries townscape. While the remainder of the building (1980s) will be extensively remodelled to create the first new inhabited Close buildings in Dumfries in living memory.
After a delayed start due to Covid-19, redevelopment work began on Monday 8th March, with construction planned to begin around July. Midsteeple Quarter are working continuously with neighbours and surrounding properties to minimise disruption throughout the duration of the construction period.
The redevelopment of The Oven is the first stage of Midsteeple Quarter’s ambitious plans to breathe new life into Dumfries town centre, with future plans of creating over 60 new homes and 50 new commercial spaces in a new neighbourhood within the existing High Street which will become home to, in the region of, 200 people.
The Midsteeple Quarter idea is built on over seven years of research and consultation carried out by the local community. The majority of the responses highlighted the need to bring more people to live back in the town centre. This will create more life during the evenings, make greater demand for services and shops and bring a greater variety and richness to the place.
You can find more about the Midsteeple Quarter project and future plans here: www.midsteeplequarter.org
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