Former 19th century Fife hotel on ‘at risk’ register set for development

A refreshed bid to breathe new life into a former Cupar hotel has been tabled by a local company.
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Cupar-based Robert Mason Contracts has submitted plans to turn the Burnside Hotel, situated right in the heart of the town in East Burnside, into four new flats and a commercial unit on the ground floor.

The C-listed building, which dates back to the early 19th century, has lain empty for many years and has become something of an eyesore after being added to Scotland’s ‘Buildings At Rrisk ‘register in 2014.

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Only the shell remains in place as the walls have been stripped back, and ground floor windows boarded over for security reasons.

The former Burnside Hotel in CuparThe former Burnside Hotel in Cupar
The former Burnside Hotel in Cupar

However, Robert Mason, from Robert Mason Contracts, said he was “committed” to bringing the former Burnside Hotel back to life and believes the proposed refurbishment and renovation is the best way forward.

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“The company has been based in Cupar since it was started and some of the current employees still have fond memories of the Burnside Hotel when it was an active bar,” he said.

“With the changing times and the advent of internet letting sites, the era of every town having a hotel has passed.

The former Burnside HotelThe former Burnside Hotel
The former Burnside Hotel
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“The Burnside seems to have closed as a bar by 2010 and thereafter spent most of the time unoccupied with very little attention to the building fabric.

“R Mason Contracts were actively involved in the Cupar Facelift project a couple of years ago where the emphasis was very much on preservation and bringing historical building back to being usable and appreciated parts of the historical landscape of the town.

“Having recently completed a conversion of a derelict former boxing club into a development of two flats R Mason contracts are looking again to revive another of Cupar’s older buildings, again into residential dwellings.”

Mr Mason added that all works needed will be done “in a manner that is sympathetic to the status of the buildings”.

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A previous plan to turn the building into a hot food takeaway failed to materialise, and the latest inspection in 2018 suggested the buildings had shown further signs of deterioration.

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