'Granton Waterfront' is the name that the Council has given to an extensive tract of land between West Granton Road and the Firth of Forth, east of Marine Drive and up to and including Granton Harbour. It was an area of gas works, petrol storage and industrial and storage uses, which by the late 1990’s was falling into disuse and dereliction. In the late 1990’s, the Council began to acquire extensive land holdings within the area, and began the process of comprehensive, planned redevelopment. It sought ideas for how the potential of the site could be realised, chiefly through consultants Llewelyn-Davies, who submitted their master plan in 2000. This demonstrated how a new urban quarter could be developed, with housing, business uses, local shops, schools and other supporting uses, and an environment of the highest urban quality created against the magnificent backdrop of the Firth of Forth and views towards Fife. The master plan has been adopted by the Council as guidance for development control purposes.

On the basis of its land holdings, the Council has set up with Scottish Enterprise Edinburgh & Lothian (SEE&L) a joint venture company - Waterfront Edinburgh Limited (WEL) promote and co-ordinate development throughout the Waterfront area, working with the two other major landowners – Secondsite (formerly Lattice and a subsidiary of British Gas) and Forth Properties, a subsidiary of Forth Ports. Each landowner has developed their own master plans broadly within the framework of the Llewelyn-Davies plan, and submitted outline planning applications for their own holdings.

Land preparation, including de-contamination works, is now well under way, and the main access road that will open up the greater part of the site is under construction. This will have the character of a broad, tree lined avenue. The first major development to be completed is an office building for Scottish Gas. Telford College will relocate to a new building on West Granton road, for which a planning application has been made. Proposals are being prepared for the first of what will ultimately be some 6,000 new houses.

Improved transport links to the rest of the city are being developed - Government approval has recently been given to the construction of a tram network for the city (link to TIE - already on CapInfo), and the proposed routes have been the subject of public consultation. The first line to be built as part of the network will link the Granton Waterfront site directly with the city centre and with Leith.