Morrison chosen for £40m Aberdeen market job

Morrison Construction has been named as the main contractor on the £40m redevelopment of Aberdeen market.

Aberdeen City Council intends the site – part of city centre regeneration plans – to become a “destination venue featuring international-style food, drink, and a retail market”.

Council documents from December 2022 cost the market project at £40m, with a related streetscape project valued at £5.1m and improvement works on nearby Union Street at £20m.

In August, a report to the council said that the market project “remains within the capital spend parameters identified in the business case for the site”.

Demolition works at the market site are complete. Construction is due to begin early next year and finish in early 2026.

The council said Morrison, which was bought by Galliford Try in 2006, intends to work with local firms as subcontractors to deliver a “world-class attraction”.

The council said the venue will include a marketplace “promoting local produce and goods alongside continental-style delicatessens, cafes and food outlets”.

The site will include small retail units alongside space for temporary and pop-up facilities, as well as flexible-use outdoor space. The council’s wider development plans also include improvements and enhanced pedestrian access in streets near the market.

Aberdeen council co-leader Ian Yuill said: “The market development will create a vibrant and exciting new destination for people to visit in the city centre, as well as create an improved connection between Union Street, The Green, and the bus and train stations.

“It is good [that] a Scottish company is to be the main contractor for the new market, which will provide a range of food and drink outlets, providing a boost to the local economy, as well as helping Union Street and the city centre continue to move forward.”

Planning consent for the market site plans was originally granted in 2021. A revised planning application was made in June following discussions with the preferred operator, McGinty’s.

The market development and related street projects are being part-funded by £20m from the UK government’s Levelling Up Fund. The council said the funding would contribute to “the new market building and nearby streetscaping”.