A leading Scottish architect has criticised the "crass" glass rotunda being added to Glasgow's Royal Concert Hall as part of a multi-million pound supermall development.

 

Professor Alan Dunlop compared the row over the plans for Glasgow's city centre, which involves the removal of the steps outside the concert hall, to the controversy over the future of Edinburgh's old Royal High School on Calton Hill, which could be turned into a "six star" hotel.

He said it was a "tale of two cities" with two controversial commercial developments in the heart of each city.

In Glasgow, he said, "a much loved, used and important piece of public realm and city centre space, the Concert Hall steps is to be demolished to help create a new, massive commercial development with a crass glass rotunda shopping mall entrance to its international concert hall and including a massive 11 storey high car park.

"Now a commercial extension to the Millennium Hotel drawn in sketch up whose main design aim seems to be to obscure the car park looks like being approved.

"Both of which will loom large over Glasgow's most important public space for the next 100 years".

In Edinburgh, he said the plans for the Royal High School would transform the "abandoned and derelict neo-classical icon."

He said the proposal for the hotel would be "sensitively undertaken by one of Scotland's best architects [Gareth Hoskins Architects] but which is being heavily resisted and criticised by Unesco because of too much commercial developer interest."

Professor Dunlop with Gordon Murray designed the copper-clad Radisson Hotel on Glasgow's Argyle Street, and the steel-clad Spectrum Building in the city's Blythswood Street.

He is an academic and teacher as well as an architect, and he has taught in the USA, UK, Germany and also lectured internationally, and in his practice, won more than 50 national and international awards.

The Glasgow plan has led to campaign to save the steps, which are popular as a meeting, performance and demonstration space, from being replaced by what some are calling a "pedal bin" shaped atrium.

Former Provost Pat Lally, who was instrumental in building the concert hall, believes the city is in danger of losing a key public space.

The 89-year-old said: "The people of Glasgow might be gaining more shops but in the process they might be losing something more valuable."

The steps are being removed to build a four-storey glass rotunda entrance for the Concert Hall.

This is part of the much wider redevelopment of the Buchanan Galleries - backed with some £80m in public money.

The plans for the supermall were given planning permission last week.

Queen Street station will be revamped with its old entrance on George Square replaced by a significant glass frontage.

The supermall will also see other changes on George Square, including a giant car park built behind Queen Street station. The Millennium Hotel, the last Georgian building on the square, will become a high-rise.

The new mall will have three floors of shops, a food court and a 10-screen cinema.

City officials will raise some £80m in tax incremental finance or TIF funding for the scheme, borrowing against future business rates they hope shops and restaurants in the mall will generate.

This money will go to pay for public works around the mall, including the "pedal bin".

Glasgow City Council believe the extended mall will "unlock over £310m of private sector investment for Glasgow; £80m of public realm and infrastructure improvements in the city centre, and 1,500 new jobs."

In Edinburgh, Susan Denyer, an adviser to Unesco, has raised concerns over the wider cultural value of the project while Edinburgh conservation watchdog the Cockburn Association said that "an alternative use which is compatible with this unique A listed building within Edinburgh's World Heritage Site should be brought forward".