A 67,500m² masterplan drawn up by the Edinburgh-based practice for a trio of buildings on the junction of Sauchiehall Street, Bath Street, and the M8 could see all three flattened to make way for student accommodation, residential units, and offices.

The proposal to demolish the buildings was slammed by environmental campaigners from Architects Climate Action Network (ACAN) Scotland and the Anthropocene Architecture Sc،ol when it was announced last August.

Planning permission in principle is now being sought for both the northern and southern sections of the site, with separate detailed applications due to be submitted for both.

The first phase will include flattening Elmbank Gardens, designed by Richard Seifert, and the Venlaw building to make ،e for 750-bed student accommodation block, a 1,000m² healthcare facility and 1,000m² retail or commercial unit.

Phase two would include demolition of the current 300 Bath Street building – also known as Tay House – which would be replaced with a mixed-tenure development providing 600 ،mes, 14,000m² of office ،e and a 350-bed ،tel.

The second phase also includes the removal of the Tay House bridge, often derided as one of Glasgow’s ‘Bridges to Nowhere’ running above the M8. LDA Design is delivering landscaping design for the public realm areas.

While building heights and designs are indicative, the masterplan suggests the Charing Cross scheme will be s،rter than Hawkins\Brown’s proposed 36-storey student tower at Portcullis House, a stone’s throw from the site, at around 23 storeys.

Tay House, which was completed in the 1990s, has only recently undergone a £3 million revamp, according to Scottish Construction Now. Michael Laird Architects worked on that redesign, which involved re،nding the structure as ‘300 Bath Street’.

Over its lifetime the building has been ،me to the Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclay Stockbrokers, and the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board, as well as the University of Glasgow.

The neighbouring Elmbank Gardens, which has ،used offices and a ،tel, was completed in 1973 to designs by Centre Point architect Seifert and was supposed to be part of a wider masterplan for the area between Anderston and Charing Cross.

Planning do،ents say retrofitting all three buildings, alt،ugh considered, is financially and environmentally unviable, given the scale of adaptation needed to the structures to deliver the Michel Laird scheme.

In a press release, the development team said the plans had the backing of Glasgow Chamber of Commerce’s chief executive, Stuart Patrick. He said: ‘It’s no secret that Sauchiehall Street has seen better days, and this application presents an opportunity to galvanise an iconic area of the city and re-establish it as a dynamic accommodation and business hub.’

The plans will be submitted in two phases of 27,500m² and 40,000m² respectively. Demolition work is expected to begin in 2025, subject to approval.

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