A Glasgow-based construction company has won a £1.9 million contract for the refurbishment and fit-out of a building on East London Street in Edinburgh for the Consulate General of Italy, which is relocating from Melville Street.
Insite Group says it will as the main contractor “transform” the Old London House building at 20-22 East London Street, noting this will be a “much larger Consulate” and will incorporate the Italian Cultural Institute which is currently on Nicolson Street.
READ MORE: Ian McConnell: A peculiar feature of the Stewart Milne collapse
Scott McMillan, managing director of Insite Group, said of the New Italy House refurbishment and fit-out: “We are incredibly honoured to be entrusted with this important project.
“The Italian Consulate and Cultural Institute play a vital role in fostering cultural exchange and understanding between Scotland and Italy. We are committed to delivering a space that is not only functional but also serves as a vibrant hub for artistic expression and community engagement."
READ MORE: Ian McConnell: Yousaf maybe Panglossian but offers more substance than Tories
Insite Group said: “We are confident that this project will become a landmark in Edinburgh, celebrating the rich cultural ties between Scotland and Italy. We look forward to…welcoming the Consulate General and Cultural Institute to their new home in the months to come.”
READ MORE: Founder 'devastated' as housebuilder collapses, 217 jobs lost
It added: “This prestigious project will see Insite transform the new premises in East London Street into a modern and functional Consulate, further strengthening the ties between Scotland and Italy. The refurbishment and fit-out will be carried out to the highest standards, incorporating sustainable and energy-efficient design elements while complementing the building's structure.”
Insite Group declared the new premises, “in the heart of Edinburgh’s New Town”, offer “a perfect blend of tradition and contemporary elegance”.
It added: “Our brief is to transform the existing building into a welcoming and functional space that reflects the warmth and dynamism of Italian culture. This will involve careful restoration of the building's period features, alongside the integration of modern amenities and technologies to create a space that is both beautiful and efficient.”
Insite Group noted it had been chosen through a competitive tender process.
It said: “The company’s track record of delivering complex projects on time and within budget, combined with…commitment to using local suppliers and talent, resonated strongly with the project stakeholder.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here