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Glasgow Live
Glasgow Live
National
Fahad Tariq

Shawlands community call for fire-ravaged building to be regenerated after blaze

Locals living in the Shawlands area are calling for an 'eyesore' building to be regenerated after it was torched on Tuesday night.

The former white elephant cinema is understood to have been deliberately set on fire with police having launched an investigation.

The large-scale blaze was attended by nine appliances and 40 firefighters who worked overnight to put out the fire with multiple nearby businesses affected.

One shop owner was devastated after his business suffered 'water damage' and doesn't know when he will be able to reopen.

READ MORE: Devastated Shawlands shop owner tells of 'water damage' after fire rips through historic cinema

The news has sent shockwaves across the community with calls being made to regenerate the historic building.

Tertia, the owner of Jan de Vries, on Kilmarnock Road, said: "I saw a large-scale emergency response at the scene. There was a commotion, it looked like quite a big problem.

"There were all kinds of stuff going on including firefighters running in and out of the building.

"The building itself is an eyesore and I have to look across at it every day. Something nice should be done with it.

"It’s a beautiful building and could be used for something else."

The historic building was set alight on Tuesday evening (Glasgow Live)

Scottish Green Party Councillor Jon Molyneux, who represents the Pollokshields ward, says he would "love" to see the derelict building put to use.

He said: "There’s a number of key properties in Shawlands that people have been hoping for regeneration or renewal and that is definitely one of the sites that’s at the forefront of people’s thinking.

"There’s a number of key buildings in Shawlands that I would love to see a really good future for and that is one of them."

Police Scotland is treating the blaze as 'wilful'.

Commenting on this, he added: "If that is the case, it would probably be thoroughly investigated and I hope that those responsible will be held to account. I’d be very concerned if there was a deliberate fire-raising in the area.

"The main thing is that nobody was hurt."

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