Scottish Power Headquarters, Tallest Tower in Scotland, Architect, Skyscraper, Building

Elphinstone Place Glasgow

Elphinstone Place, St Vincent Street, central Glasgow, Scotland

post updated 4 December 2023

Elphinstone Place tower building to be located on a derelict site in the city centre.

Glasgow Headquarters for Scottish Power

Scottish Power Glasgow Headquarters

Scottish Power has received approval to build its new £100m headquarters in Glasgow’s city centre. Planning approval to relocate from its current HQ in the city’s South Side to the corner of St Vincent Street and India Street was granted earlier this week and work is expected to begin later this year on a 14-storey block.

The development will be erected on a derelict site which was previously used as the HQ of Strathclyde Regional Council. 19 Apr 2013

Previously

Tallest Building in Scotland

Elphinstone Tower
Developer: Elphinstone + City Lofts Group Joint Venture
2007-
Design: Conran & Partners / Cooper Cromar Architects

Elphinstone Place Tower

EXCLUSIVE images above of what should be the Tallest Tower in Glasgow

Elphinstone Place property image from Cooper Cromar Architects Dec 2004

Elphinstone Tower architect : Conran & Partners, London, UK

Dec 2004

Elphinstone Place Building

Elphinstone’s Stylish Addition to Glasgow Skyline

This new office building will have stunning glass, and a great curved shape. The proposal suggests the interior decor will include modern furniture from the office reception desk in the reception lobby alongside elegant leather furniture on some of the individual floors, making for a posh experience.

Elphinstone Place is a dramatic thirty nine storey tower and seven storey office block proposed to replace the former Strathclyde Regional Council offices at India Street, near St Vincent St Glasgow with its church by Alexander Thomson – St Vincent Street Church.

At 134 metres the skyscraper will be a full nine metres higher than Scotland’s current tallest structure – Glasgow tower at Science Centre Glasgow (125 metres).

The apartment, office, retail and leisure development, will comprise 202 luxury homes, 20 000 sqm of office and retail space, with leisure facilities including a swimming pool. It will be sited on a 1.4 acre site at the western end of St. Vincent Street, adjacent to the M8 motorway. The scheme will also give back a significant new public space and bring to life the streetscape of the surrounding area.

Tallest Building in Scotland – information via Cooper Cromar Architects, 21 Dec 2004

Elphinstone Place – Scotland’s tallest building

Background to Glasgow Skyscraper

£100m development is expected to be approved today to build Scotland’s tallest building. 21 Dec 2004

Glasgow City Council is likely to grant planning permission for a landmark 440ft building in St Vincent Street which would replace the former Strathclyde Regional Council offices.

Elphinstone Place would surpass the Red Road flats in Glasgow, Europe’s tallest homes at just over 328ft, and would be 30ft higher than Scotland’s current tallest structure, the Glasgow Tower. Historic Scotland and Scottish Civic Trust have objected to the proposals.

The height of the building may affect the view from Glasgow University towards Park Circus and the view to Woodlands Hill and Gilmore Hill from the city. There are several listed buildings close by.

Comparable recent skyscrapers in the UK include the 38-storey building in Birmingham and 30-storey Beetham Tower in Liverpool. Permission has also been granted for a 47-storey, £150m glass tower in Manchester.

Elphinstone hope the tower will start on site Spring 2006 with completion by late 2007.

Cooper Cromar Architects: Elphinstone Place Building information

‘Elphinstone’s Stylish Addition to Glasgow Skyline’

Elphinstone Place tower images from Cooper Cromar Architects

A stylish new skyline landmark is proposed for Glasgow in plans submitted to the City Council by Elphinstone on 22 Mar 2004.

The 39 storey building is proposed to replace the former Strathclyde Regional Council offices at St Vincent Street.

Glasgow Skyscraper

At 134 metres, the skyscraper will be a full 9 metres higher than Scotland’s current tallest structure, the Glasgow Tower (Glasgow Science Centre – 125 metres high).

To be named “Elphinstone Place” the £100m residential, office, leisure and retail development will comprise:
202 luxury homes, 20, 804 sq m of office and retail space, incorporating leisure facilities with pool on a 1.4 acre site at the western end of St Vincent Street, adjacent to the M8 motorway.

The single tower design, the height of 30 double decker buses had to pass exhaustive wind tunnel tests, the most stringent ever conducted in Scotland and will make it the tallest building in Scotland.

Elphinstone Chief Executive Ken Ross (pictured left) said “We wanted to create a world class development and the team have created a design which will become a landmark building and an icon that will make Glasgow proud. It will be an outstanding addition to the skyline of the city and will transform, regenerate and revitalise an important part of the City. Elphinstone Place will provide new homes and workplaces and will underline Glasgow’s status as a great European City, reflecting its growing optimism as an exciting place to live and work.”

Elphinstone have been working closely with Glasgow City Council, the owners of the site, to maximise the potential of the highly visible location, adding new residential and commercial assets that will be a spur to further regeneration of this area of Glasgow City centre. Subject to obtaining Planning Permission, Elphinstone intends to start demolishing the current buildings at the end of 2004 with construction work staring in Spring 2005. The development will be ready for occupation in late 2007

Cooper Cromar Architects: Elphinstone Place – Building information 22 Mar 2004

Various News Excerpts re ‘The Tallest Building in Scotland’:
Sunday Times article
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2090-1051950,00.html
fairly critical of the proposed Elphinstone tower

How the glasgow skyscraper story broke:

St Vincent Skyscraper
A £100m 39-storey skyscraper is proposed by Elphinstone Group by Cooper Cromar Architects for Glasgow’s St Vincent St – 9m higher than Scotland’s current highest building, the Glasgow Tower: Elphinstone images online soon
www.elphinstone-group.co.uk
www.theherald.co.uk/news/12500.html

In Edinburgh Forth Ports Plc are looking at building a 35-40 storey skyscraper at Leith Docks

Glasgow Tower
for comparison:

tower images added to Glasgow Tours

Elphinstone Land are also the developers for Phase 2 of SECC Glasgow

Adjacent key building close to Elphinstone Place: St Vincent St Church

Cooper Cromar Architects were the architects for Glasgow Fort

Currently the tallest tower in Scotland is Glasgow Tower by Richard Horden Architects / BDP Architects

Sep 2005 Update
42-storey skyscraper
Tallest scottish building planned Lanarkshire-based John Russell Partnership. Architect, Bob Ramage, apparently inspired by 48-storey One Wall Centre in Vancouver. For comparison, the proposed Elphinstone Place tower by Cooper Cromar is a 39 storey building: Dalmarnock Tower – Glasgow skyscraper building.

SECC Urban Village – Elphinstone Glasgow housing at QD2.

Glasgow Building Designs

Contemporary Glasgow Property Designs – recent architectural selection below:

Ingram Street Property Development

image courtesy of Artisan Real Estate
65-97 Ingram Street Glasgow

The Foundry Cathcart housing development

image courtesy of Cala Homes (West)
The Foundry Cathcart housing development

Comments / photos for the Elphinstone Place Glasgow – Glasgow Tall Building page welcome