A north-east council boss has said they have not ruled out hiring a squad of “property guardians” to protect their vacant or derelict buildings.
The scheme, which is growing in popularity across the country, offers would-be tenants temporary accommodation inside empty buildings, protecting them from illegal squatting, asset stripping, vandalism and arson.
SNP councillor Linda Clark has already this week described the scheme as “sensible”.
Now, Aberdeenshire Council’s head of property, Allan Whyte, has revealed that he has not ruled out deploying the initiative in the future.
He said: “Aberdeenshire Council considers a number of options for its empty properties, including property guardians.
“While we wouldn’t dismiss guardianship as an option, this isn’t a service we have used to date.”
Property guardianship came to the fore last year, when Manchester United stars Ryan Giggs and Gary Neville allowed homeless squatters to live in a former stock exchange building over winter.
The duo had earlier won planning permission to convert the property into a boutique hotel.
Aberdeenshire Council has 12 major sites across Aberdeenshire, including two large offices, which lie vacant.
A spokeswoman for Ad Hoc, a property guardian organisation which finds places for tenants to stay, said opening the sites up could prevent them from disaster.
“An example of a property falling to prey to such horrors is the Highland Haven Hotel which has reportedly lost £600,000 in value since being left vacant in 2010,” she said.
“By installing guardians, owners can rest easy knowing that their property will be protected through occupation, maintenance issues will be reported and dealt with quickly.”
Mrs Clark, who has served on the authority’s housing committee for nine years, added: “Aberdeenshire is a very innovative local authority – it has to be. I’m pleased this has come to our attention.
“It would be foolish not to look at things. If it could be brought before the housing committee, that’s a very good idea.”
The Highland Haven, in Macduff, was destroyed by a blaze in 2014. Although not owned by Aberdeenshire Council, the authority had to pay to demolish the building in the fire’s aftermath.
