Stirling Council's £1.16m boost after property disposal

Stirling Council received £1.16m last year from the disposal of properties and land it said were surplus to its requirements. The council's property disposal scheme aims to ensure that eligible buildings are brought back into productive use through sale or lease, or redeveloped to support local communities and economic growth. The authority received income from the "successful disposal" of the former Beech Gardens care home in Torbex, the former Croftamie Nursery, and the Cowane Centre and Wolfcraig office building in Stirling. It said there was also progress on several "high-profile regeneration opportunities" including the Viewforth site and land next to Forthside Bridge, both in Stirling. It said the preferred bidder for the eight-hectare Viewforth site had a conditional legal agreement that was close to conclusion. A planning application for the site is expected in the summer. Councillor Gerry McLaughlan said: "(The scheme) enables us to reduce ongoing costs for maintenance, security, insurance and utilities at these sites, and brings them back into productive use for communities, supporting regeneration efforts. "It's vital that we keep our property portfolio under constant re