Council apologises for makeover delay

East Ayrshire Council has apologised for delays to the refurbishment of buildings around Mauchline’s historic centre.

- STEPHEN BARK

In their spring update, officials said that a number of projects to repair and improve buildings have taken longer than expected.

In many cases, the extent of the works required only became apparent when the projects began on-site.

They said: “You may have noticed some of our current grant aided property repair projects have taken a little longer than initially anticipated.

“This is due to some properties requiring unforeseen additional works, because of the buildings’ condition.”

This has been exacerbated by the strict rules put in place by the main funder of the conservation works, Historic Environment Scotland (HES), who put in place conditions to minimise the loss or damage to the historic properties.

The report continued: “As you can imagine these projects are delicate and require traditional methods of repair and restoration.