Developer updates plan for new houses on site of demolished Postings Shopping Centre

Hundreds of motorists have made use of the derelict land since fences around it collapsed – hitting Fife Council’s sale of discount seasons tickets for parking.

The site is intended for a new housing development, but it seems unlikely any work will start this year.

In May 2025, developer Cruden unveiled proposals to build much-needed affordable homes to address the region’s housing emergency - and breathe new life into the town centre.

It staged consultation events locally, but this week, the company confirmed it had yet to complete a deal with land owner, businessman Tahir Ali.

A spokesperson from Cruden, said: "We remain committed to delivering the postings site in Kirkcaldy in partnership with Kingdom Housing Association and intend to submit a planning application towards the end of 2026 subject to concluding a contract on the site with the landowner."

The massive site has sat empty and since the shopping centre was demolished in 2022. It hit the headlines when it was put up for auction with a £1 price tag by its former owners Columbia Threadneedle in 2019.

It was bought by Mr Ali at auction for just over £300,000 and re-branded the Kirkcaldy Centre in a bid to breathe new life into it, but didn’t survive beyond lockdown as the last tenants, Farmfoods and Lloyds Chemist moved out in the summer of 2021, leaving it as a shopping centre with no shops .

The empty building became a target for vandals, resulting in so much damage that Mr Ali had to have one entrance bricked up.

Cruden’s plans for the site include a mix of affordable housing tenures, including properties for those aged over 55. The development will comprise a mix of one, two, and three-bedroom apartments, including a series of colony houses. No definitive number of homes was given, but they will be owned by Kingdom Housing Association alongside Fife Council.

Last year, the developer submitted a Proposal of Application Notice (PAN) to the local authority - the first step in the planning process - which signified formal notice of intent to submit a planning application following a minimum 12-week period of consultation.

The site was back in the headlines this week as the adhoc free carpark was blamed as one of the reasons for a drop in the number of discount season tickets being bought by motorists - to the point that officers wan to scrap the scheme altogether and use the money for other projects. Just 29 drivers make use of the cut price passes which let them pay £60 per quarter rather than the standard charge of £130.

At Kirkcaldy area committee’s meeting on Tuesday, Councillor Alistair Cameron (Kirkcaldy Central, Labour) said of the decline in season tickets: “It is pretty obvious. You have the railway station and Postings -there were over 80 car parks there today! It is not difficult to work out why - you either pay or get a free parking space. It is simple enough really.”