Buildings designed by Scotland’s most celebrated architect could be turned into gyms, offices or a place of worship after being put on the market.
The Charles Rennie Mackintosh properties, described as “exceptional and truly unique”, are up for sale with a starting price of just £350,000.
The properties in Maryhill, two miles north-west of Glasgow city centre, are being advertised by David Allison & Company.
The firm says the sale is a “truly unique opportunity to purchase a block of three exceptional buildings, which notably include a former hall of worship and an adjoining former janitor’s house, both designed by the celebrated architect, Charles Rennie Mackintosh, and grade A listed; [and] in addition, a superb red sandstone former church building which is grade B listed”.
Charles Rennie Mackintosh
ALAMY
Characteristics include stained glass features in the Mackintosh style
DAVID ALLISON & COMPANY
The Mackintosh hall and janitor’s house were completed in 1899.
The red sandstone adjoining church, which is no longer a place of worship, was designed by Neil Campbell Duff and opened in 1905.
These buildings are linked by a red sandstone, Gothic-style archway.
It notes various alternative uses for the block of buildings at 15-17 Shakespeare Street — subject to planning consent, including “residential, offices, nursery, gym etc”.
A property note adds: “The ground and upper floor of the janitor’s house is in shell condition following rot eradication works.”
David Allison, the firm’s director, said: “Initial enquiries have been very positive and include an expanding church organisation looking at an additional location.”
A number of other buildings designed by Mackintosh remain off limits to the public.
They include The Lighthouse, the former headquarters of The Herald newspaper in the city centre, which up until the pandemic was used as Scotland’s centre for design and architecture.
Plans have been lodged to turn the building into a hub for climate technology firms.
Inside Mackintosh Halls on 15-17 Shakespeare Street
Various uses for the Hall, subject to planning permissions include residential, offices, nursery or gym
DAVID ALLISON & COMPANY
Scotland Street School, owned by Glasgow city council and used as a museum of education, has been closed for refurbishment, with no firm date for its reopening being issued.
The fire-ravaged Mackintosh building at Glasgow School of Art, widely considered to be the architect’s masterpiece, may never be fully restored, a report has suggested. The A listed building was badly damaged by blazes in 2014 and 2018.
Consultants now say restoration work may not mean “full reinstatement to its pre-fire condition”.
There has been a row over regeneration plans. Developers want to replace the nearby O2 ABC music venue site, which was also gutted in the most recent fire, with food halls and student flats.
A Glasgow School of Art spokesperson said: “The proposals fundamentally compromise the category A listed Mackintosh Building.”
The Scottish government will consider the potential impact of the plan at hearings later this year.