Scottish Property Awards Scottish Property Awards | Page 2

Public: Scottish Property Awards AWARDING THE BEST The 4th annual Scottish Property Awards, the independent programme which celebrates excellence in commercial property, has launched its 2017 programme T he best new buildings in Scotland have now been revealed in the 4th annual Scot- tish Property Awards. The expert judging panel has reviewed 41 Scottish commer- cial projects, and selected those which will progress to the finals of the national competition. Winners will be chosen in March. The Scottish Property Awards 2017 once again celebrates best practice across the breadth of the in- dustry including developers, funders, architects, coun- cils, agents, professional advisers and contractors. Fiona Morton, the former Managing Partner and Chairman of Ryden, returns as chair to lead the ex- pert judging panel of 18 people, drawn from across the Scottish property industry. In addition, the panel is joined for the first time by Paul Curran, Managing Director of Quartermile Developments and Vice Chair of the SPF alongside Gail Hunter, Regional Director of RICS Scotland and Graham Ross, Deputy Chair of Architecture and Design Scotland. Last year’s programme reviewed 40 new develop- ments undergoing construction in Scotland and wel- comed 700 people to celebrate the achievements in the sector with the ultimate award of the night being present- ed to Drum Property Group for the second year in a row. Morton said the judging process always reveals many “really good examples of regeneration, innova- tive design and excellent sales and marketing”. She added, “The aim of the Scottish Property Awards is to stage a credible and independent competition which 22 promotes the best in commercial property. It is hard work but also immensely rewarding for everyone in- volved. I hope all the winners make the most of their win and shout it from the rooftops.” BRE Scotland is once again supporting the Awards. This year, the organisation is sponsoring the ‘Devel- opment of the Year’ category, and BRE Director for Scotland, Rufus Logan, sat on the judging panel. BRE’s Rufus Logan notes: “The quantity and qual- ity of entries this year was exceptional and every cat- egory was hotly contested, which is to be expected given that activity within the Scottish marketplace continues to grow. “From a BRE standpoint, we place huge impor- tance on sustainable development, so I was pleased to see this demonstrated in a large proportion of this year’s entries.” Fiona Morton, chair of the Scottish Property Awards judging panel, comments: “It is great to see a substantial increase in the volume of entries this year and to have such a wide range of development projects of significance, both large and small coming forward from all across the country. “Buildings have been considered against various criteria including regeneration success, architectural merit, community contribution and economic impact and we look forward to celebrating the best in com- mercial property at the awards ceremony in March.” n www.kdmedia.co.uk/propertyawards Tel: 0131 337 6232