THE Royal Botanic Garden of Edinburgh has redrawn plans for a major revamp after a campaign against the "brutalist" proposals was launched by neighbours.
A public hearing today at Edinburgh City Chambers will be told the RBGE is to abandon plans to build a 26ft tall by 200ft long vehicle shed at its nursery.
It has also compromised on some lighting and a boiler facility, but local residents are due to address councillors and RBGE representatives at the hearing.
Old glasshouses will be replaced by a mix of polytunnels, mesh tunnels and glasshouses. Some views from nearby homes will be affected and a number of residents have raised objections.
Other neighbours and the Stockbridge and Inverleith Community Council also objected to the relocation of a birch tree to make way for a building they said would be twice the height of their back wall.
Owners of listed buildings at Inverleith Gardens will be able to see the main glasshouse from their gardens and houses.
Resident Morris Grassie, who has lived in the area for 50 years, is expected to speak out against the proposals at the hearing.
He earlier said he still had concerns over aspects of the proposals, saying "the gardens have made a couple of modifications to their plans, but they are still going to build a huge glasshouse which is right behind the wall of these listed buildings - it's going to degenerate the area".
Inverleith Tory Councillor Iain Whyte said the plans risked "interrupting the important skyline views from the northern edge of the site and conflicting with the open space character of the area".
The RBGE said residents have been told by letter of the changes to the plans and the vehicle shed and its external works will be deleted from the blueprint.
A total of 54 of the 19ft lamp posts residents said would cause light pollution will also be deleted from the proposals. The boiler flue is to be reduced in height, but noise concerns with this facility remain.
An RBGE spokesman said: "The improvements we need to make are key to future plans to improve RBGE, and vital to the future of the Edinburgh site and its global work in plant conservation and science.
"For example, without the new glasshouse in the nursery, it won't be possible to undertake the badly needed refurbishment of the research glasshouses on the main site, as we need somewhere to decant the plants to."
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