THE majority of people living close to the site of the controversial Caltongate project are in favour of the £300 million Old Town redevelopment, according to a survey.

A total of 53 per cent of those who responded to a survey of people living within a mile of the New Street site said developer Mountgrange's proposals would improve the city.

That was almost double the number - 27 per cent of the 700 respondents - who were against the development.

A five-star hotel, conference centre, office blocks, flats, bars, restaurants and a new public square would all be built under the plans for the old bus depot site.

But the plans have proved controversial because they involve demolishing two listed buildings, as well as bulldozing tenements on the Royal Mile, to create a new link between the Canongate and the proposed public square.

The questionnaires were sent to 30,000 homes within a square mile of the Caltongate site, with a DVD offering a computer-generated tour of the development.

Manish Chande, chief executive of Mountgrange, said: "We are very pleased that, by such a clear majority, people see the tremendous benefits that the Caltongate project will bring not just to the Old Town, but to the wider city.

"We have and will continue to listen and carry out our consultation as the project evolves."

But Julie Logan, spokeswoman for the Save Our Old Town campaign group, said: "Nobody is seriously going to argue against the site of the old bus depot being redeveloped. It's obvious people will support that and that it will benefit the city. What people are opposed to is the loss of historic listed buildings and the demolition of perfectly good tenements.

"It's all very well for Mountgrange to say that its survey has found people believe it will bring new jobs to the area. They are forgetting about the people that used to work in the Bongo Club or in the artists' studios at New Street that have now been demolished."

The survey, carried out by Mori on behalf of Mountgrange, asked residents for their general opinions of the plans. It did not ask specific questions about the proposed demolition of the former Canongate Venture building, the old Sailor's Ark hostel, or the Royal Mile tenements.

Hundreds of objections have been triggered by the proposals amid fears they will ruin the look of the Royal Mile and mar classic views of the city. Heritage groups have condemned the look of many of the envisaged new buildings.

Mountgrange has controversially been given planning permission to knock down the run-down bus depot and start work on the foundations of the scheme, even though the green light has yet to be given for any of the individual buildings at the heart of the development.

Visitors unaware city is World Heritage Site
ALMOST two-thirds of visitors to the city are unaware that central Edinburgh is a World Heritage Site, a new survey has found.

But a quarter of visitors to the city said its historic buildings were its most important feature.

The first survey of public opinion about Edinburgh's World Heritage Site status, awarded in the mid-1990s, has been carried out jointly by the World Heritage Trust and Napier University. More than 250 people were surveyed on the street in the spring.

The survey found that 56 per cent of Edinburgh people were aware that the heart of Edinburgh was a World Heritage Site, compared with 41 per cent of visitors.

Ninety-seven per cent of locals felt the city deserved World Heritage Site status.

• Caltongate development