A SCOTTISH council has demolished an "eyesore" former hotel after buying it for just £1.
Falkirk Council announced on Wednesday that the “abandoned former Royal Hotel in Slamannan has been torn down” after lying empty on the village’s high street for more than two decades.
The council bought the hotel earlier in 2024 through the Ownerless Property Transfer Scheme (OPTS), which removes the obstacles normally associated with bringing ownerless property back into use.
The scheme was formally launched by the King’s and Lord Treasurer’s Remembrancer (KLTR) – the Crown’s representative in Scotland who deals with ownerless property – on March 1, 2024. The Falkirk Council project was one of the first to benefit.
The council said that, similar to Community Asset Transfers, OPTS transfers “require strong local support and a solid business case, ensuring clear public interest and community benefits”.
The council paid just £1 for the hotel, but also covered KLTR’s external costs.
Cecil Meiklejohn, the SNP leader of Falkirk Council, said acquiring the hotel through the scheme had helped “speed up what otherwise could have been a lengthy process”.
She said: “The hotel was an eyesore that gave a negative impression of the area and was in such poor condition that it could not be renovated. As a council we were determined to fix that by taking ownership of the building and demolishing it.
“We’ve committed regeneration funding for Slamannan and can now work with the local community to revitalise this prominent site in the heart of the village.”
The council said that preparatory work on the demolition began on Monday, with the hotel’s chimneys demolished by hand.
Heavy machinery was then brought on site to demolish the building the following day. The entire site is expected to be completely levelled and cleared by Friday.
The land will then be transformed into a green space and the community asked to take part in a consultation exercise to decide how exactly it should be used.
KLTR chief executive Bobby Sandeman said: “I am delighted that the people of Slamannan will benefit from our new OPTS by Falkirk Council ensuring that the site of the old Royal Hotel is used to benefit the local community. “The scheme is off to a fantastic start and this demonstrates that, through excellent collaboration, ownerless properties across Scotland can be brought back into productive use at minimal cost. I look forward to seeing the completed site in due course.”
