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Council departments  >  Marischal College  >  Why we are making the move

Why we are making the move

The move to Marischal College is not about having nice new offices to work in...

Staff are currently working in a building (St. Nicholas House) that was constructed in 1966 with a calculated 30-year life span - it is now in its 41st year of use. The Administration agree that St. Nicholas House does not provide staff with a suitable working environment, nor does it give us the opportunity to be energy efficient and utilise renewable energy. Marischal College could allow this, as we will construct a building that is, insofar as practicable, environmentally sustainable.

The option of just continuing with the current office accommodation is simply not sustainable. St. Nicholas House already fails to provide suitable fit-for-purpose accommodation from which to deliver the council's services. The council would have to undertake significant major capital investment over the next five years to provide suitable office accommodation.

Marischal College provides the best-value option and is not the most expensive of the three - new greenfield development, refurbishment of St. Nicholas House or conversion of Marischal College. In addition to this, Marischal College is an iconic building and its conversion to the council's new headquarters will be good for the economy and the heritage of the city. This development will also allow us to create an environmentally sustainable landmark building and show that we are serious about being the energy capital of Europe into the future.

Marischal College brings significant advantages which other options would not fully delivery:

• The 100-year old building is preserved for posterity.
• The unattractive and inefficient St. Nicholas House blot-on-the-landscape is swept away.
• Removing St. Nicholas House paves the way for renewal of the city centre and the creation of a new civic focal point.
• Opportunity to be environmentally sustainable.
• In economic terms, moving council staff to Marischal College will retain 1,300 people in the city centre. This has an obvious impact on local business and the viability of our city centre. The council's involvement in the redevelopment of Marischal College will also result in bringing back into use this major building that has been lying vacant for some years.

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