A historic church building in the centre of Aberdeen will be returned to its former glistening glory as part a multi-million pound redevelopment.
G1 Group already has planning permission in principle to turn Greyfriars Kirk on Broad Street into an “upmarket” restaurant.
And now detailed plans of the project have been submitted, revealing the firm plans to power-wash the A-listed granite building as part of the revamp.
The work will clean off years of grime, and comes eight years after Marischal College was given the same treatment – making it now one of Aberdeen’s most photographed spots.
Last night the news was broadly welcomed, with supporters saying it would make the Gothic church, built in 1903, fit in with its surroundings once more.
Despite repeated calls to wash the building at the same time as the council moved its administrative headquarters to Marischal College in 2011, the kirk still belonged to the Church of Scotland.
It was sold off a year later, with various plans tabled for its future use until CAF Properties acquired it in 2016.
Now G1 Group is keen to push on with its vision for a restaurant, which would be spread across five floors.
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Under the detailed plans, the existing stairs inside would be replaced and the balcony removed.
Masonry work would be carried out, with any additional granite required sourced locally.
Application documents from architects LAS says the proposal to clean the granite would bring it to “the same standard” as Marischal College.
It reads: “It was always appreciated that the building and it’s siting were such that a sensitive approach would be required to create something special within the disused building.“
Cleaning would include using steam to remove the weeds from the building and a special low pressure wash with wet slurry to make the granite sparkle once more.
Adrian Watson, chief executive of city centre business body Aberdeen Inspired, said: “We naturally welcome capital investment of this kind into our city centre. With already considerable investment and regeneration in the area, this proposal ought to compliment that.
“It is well documented that this is a challenging time for towns and city centres the length and breadth of the country and its vital that well considered planning applications are positively received.”
Andrew Martin, the vice-chairman of the City and Shire Hoteliers Association and director at the centre of Scottish Tourism, said: “Broad Street, with Marischal College, is a stunning example of a city centre street anywhere. Things like the Marischal Square development have brought people back to the area and we must not follow the mistakes of other cities by not prioritising our city centre.”
Chairman of Aberdeen Civic Society, Dominic Fairlie said that compared with the council headquarters, the church looked “a bit out of place”.
He said: “There are various difficulties with cleaning historic granite buildings but I’m sure if it is done with care it will fit in with Marischal College.”
G1 Group was contacted for comment.
