Source/Contact: Leisure Opportunities, 28/01/2009

Plans for the £40m mixed-use redevelopment of the derelict Cowgate district in Edinburgh have been approved by the city council.  The SoCo scheme, led by Edinburgh developer Whiteburn Projects and designed by Allan Murray Architects (AMA), is set to transform the site which was ravaged by the Edinburgh Old Town fire in 2002.  Located in South Bridge / Cowgate, the site will host a 200-room hotel, operated by boutique hotelier, Hoxton, which is led by the co-founder of Prét a Manger. There will also be a new restaurant, festival venue, business centre and a La Belle Angele nightclub – which was destroyed in the fire.