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Scotland-England border landmark plans on the move

GRETNA LANDMARK TRUST the Star of CaledoniaGRETNA LANDMARK TRUST
Fresh plans for the Star of Caledonia are being submitted at a new site

Fresh plans are being submitted for a multi-million pound landmark sculpture near the border between Scotland and England.

The revised Star of Caledonia scheme would be on a new site near Gretna Green less than a mile further up the M74 than previous proposals.

The winning design for the project was selected 13 years ago but building work has never started.

If the latest revamped plans are approved it is hoped the £11m artwork could be in place by next year.

Balmond Studio The Star of CaledoniaBalmond Studio
The price of the artwork has risen and it has been reduced slightly in scale

The idea of the landmark - hoping to emulate the success of the Angel of the North - first surfaced in the wake of the foot-and-mouth outbreak of 2001.

It aimed to celebrate the area's role as a "gateway" between Scotland and England while also helping to boost the economy.

A competition to design the massive structure was won in 2011 by Cecil Balmond's Star of Caledonia.

Planning permission was secured but the project never made progress due to funding issues.

It has now been backed by Community Windpower, South of Scotland Enterprise and the Borderlands Growth Deal but costs have risen steadily from an early estimate of £4m.

The size of the star has also been reduced slightly from 40m (130ft) to 35m (115ft).

Balmond Studio An artists impression of the the Star of CaledoniaBalmond Studio
The new proposals also include a visitor centre to promote southern Scotland

The latest plans are at a slightly different location and include a visitor centre designed to promote Dumfries and Galloway and the Borders.

Susan Houston, chair of the Star of Caledonia Trust, told Good Morning Scotland the structure of the artwork remained unchanged and they now hoped to get it "over the line" to build it.

"It is the most beautiful half circles of steel and archways that go up into the sky but it is also sitting on the most beautiful land formation as well," she said.

"It will be higher than the Angel of the North."

Ms Houston - whose late father Alasdair initiated the competition for the design -said it should have a "dramatic wow factor" both at day and at night.

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