The Situation with Edinburgh's Scaffolding-Clad Hotel?

Along the busiest tourist streets in the heart of Scotland's heritage-rich city centre sits a giant structure of metal poles and platforms.

For half a decade, Radisson's G&V Hotel on the corner of the famous Royal Mile and the adjacent bridge has been a shrouded blight.

Travellers find no available accommodations, walkers are squeezed through tight corridors, and commercial tenants have left the building.

Repair work began in 2020 and was initially projected to last a short period, but now exasperated residents have been told the scaffolding could persist until 2027.

Extended Timelines

Sir Robert McAlpine (SRM), the lead company, says it will be "towards the end" of 2026 before the initial parts of the frame can be removed.

A local authority figure a council official has described it as a "negative feature" on the area, while preservation advocates say the work is "very troublesome".

What is happening with this apparently perpetual project?

A Troubled History

The 136-bedroom hotel was constructed on the site of the previous regional authority offices in 2009.

Figures from when it originally launched under the a fashion-branded banner, put the development expense at about a significant sum.

Remedial efforts got underway not long after the start of the Covid pandemic with the hotel itself not accepting visitors since 2022.

A section of the street and a large section of sidewalk leading up to the junction of the Royal Mile have been left out of action by the project.

Walkers going to and from the a nearby area and Victoria Terrace have been required one after another into a narrow, covered walkway.

Seafood restaurant Ondine departed from the building and relocated to St Andrews in Fife in 2024.

In a release, its management said building work had obliged them to change the restaurant's appearance, adding that "patrons merited more".

It is also hosts popular eatery a chain – which has hung large signs on the structure to inform customers it is operating as usual.

Missed Deadlines

An communication to the a city committee in the start of the year suggested that the process of "exposing" the exterior would commence in February, with a total takedown by the year's end.

But the contractor has said that is not the case, referencing "highly complicated" structural challenges for the postponement.

"We project starting to dismantle parts of the structure near the finish of 2026, with further improvements continuing thereafter," the company commented.

"We are working closely with everyone involved to ensure we provide an improved site for the public."

Community and Heritage Concerns

A heritage director, lead of conservation group the an advocacy group, said the work had contributed to the city's reputation of being "slow" for construction projects.

She said those associated with the project had a "civic responsibility" to minimise disturbance and should blend the work into the city's design.

She said: "It renders the pedestrian experience in that area of the city exceptionally challenging.

"It is puzzling why there is not an effort to integrate it into the urban landscape or develop something more aesthetic and avant-garde."

Continued Work

A project spokesperson said work on "measures to beautify the site" was in progress.

They continued: "We acknowledge the annoyances felt by local residents and enterprises.

"This constitutes a extended and complex process, demonstrating the difficulty and scale of the repair work required, however we are focused on finishing this necessary work as soon as is practicable."

The council leader said the council would "continue to put pressure" on those responsible to wrap up the project.

She said: "This scaffolding has been a problem for years, and I echo the exasperation of locals and nearby shops over these ongoing postponements.

"That said, I also acknowledge that the firm has a obligation to make the building safe and that this repair has been hugely complex."