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Dunbeg - A New Coastal Woodland Settlement

Architect: Connolly, Tom, RSA · b. 1954

Dunbeg - A New Coastal Woodland Settlement

The Phase three of this development was commenced in 2019 to deliver 300 affordable houses, including one and two bedroom flats, two – four bedroom…

The Phase three of this development was commenced in 2019 to deliver 300 affordable houses, including one and two bedroom flats, two – four bedroom houses. All are affordable, mid-market rent, rent-to-buy, social rent and midmarket sale.in the first significant growth area outside Oban’s urban core.

The project was a partnership between Link Housing Association and Argyll & Bute Council, and a design-led approach that was influential in procuring the housing. This helped address the moorland and village setting for the housing and challenges associated with accessibility of local infrastructure
for new residents. The aim was an integral extension of the
existing community of Dunbeg.

Extensive preparatory work was undertaken by the architects Elder & Cannon Architects with
Gillespies Landscape Architects
and G3 egineers working in conjunction with specialists to fully understand the history, setting and needs of the settlement and its inhabitants. Equal care was taken in how the proposed development would look from the sea as well as on land, with sporadic settlements integrated into the new plan and attention given to linking holistically to woodland walks and the existing cycle path to Oban.

It has been hailed as an exemplar to the way Scotland should move in its approach to new housing between now and 2040; with careful and sensitive thought being given to the setting and its impact on the landscape as well as the full engagement through meaningful consultation with the local community at each stage of the project.