Roof vents must go as Council reject Uni proposal

The controversial roof ducts were installed on the recently refurbished student’s union building without the correct planning approval. Permission has since been sought to retrospectively install the ducts. The original drawings submitted by the applicant, BDG architecture + design to Fife Council, failed to show the external plant.

Objections were lodged from neighbouring residents and businesses of which St Andrews Preservation Trust was one, citing the lack of prior planning approval a ‘deeply regrettable’ approach which ‘sets a very undesirable precedent for future development in sensitive areas of St Andrews’. The council’s rejection highlighted the adverse impact the ‘unsynpathetic modernist, almost industrial architectural solution’ has on the character of St Andrews. Niall Scott, St Andrews University said: “We’ll be meeting with Fife Council planners as soon as possible to find out why the application was refused and in the hope of agreeing a prompt solution.”