Members of the public will this week for the first time have the opportunity to have their say on plans to transform one of Edinburgh's most distinctive landmarks into a five star hotel.
On Friday and Saturday the old Royal High School on Edinburgh's Calton Hill will open its doors to invite the public to view and comment on the plans.
In advance of the public consultation, the developers - Duddingston House Properties (DHP) and the Urbanist Group - have released architect Gareth Hoskins' initial impressions of what the former school's assembly hall might look like if the development is granted planning permission and turned into a reception area for the proposed hotel.
The A-listed former boys' school, designed in a neo-classical Doric style by Thomas Hamilton, opened in 1829 but has been unused since 1968 when the school was relocated.
Previous proposals for the iconic building, which never came to pass, have been to use it to house the Scottish Parliament, a national photography centre and a military museum.
The derelict building is owned by the City of Edinburgh Council which granted DHP a 125-year conditional lease after the company won a public competition in 2010.
The developers have raised £55 million of private investment for the project and say that it would create around 640 jobs and deliver a £27 million annual boost to Edinburgh's economy.
A second exhibition of further developed proposals will be held on 5 and 6 March prior to an application for planning consent being submitted.
Marion Williams of the Cockburn Association, which works to promote the conservation of Edinburgh's architectural heritage, said that the association would make a decision about whether it would support the plan once more detail of the proposed development was available.
"This building is one of the city's greatest assets and we are encouraging the restoration of a hugely important building - not just for Edinburgh but at a UK level," she said. "We need to see the detail on the proposed new buildings for the development. As it is currently a public building, we would be keen to see some public access to it maintained if it becomes a private high-end hotel."
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