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OFF THE BEATEN PATHScottish Parliament BuildingThe new Scottish Parliament building, like the old ones is located in Edinburgh and were greeted with much controversy. The construction of the buildings began in 1999. The buildings official opening was on October 9th, 2004. Queen Elizabeth attended the opening, but the designer, Catalan architect, Enric Miralles had died on the 3rd of July in the year 2000, just over a year after the construction was begun. The cost of the buildings was about £414, although the estimates had been between €10 and £40 million. It is apparently the case that everywhere, governments underestimate the cost of things! The building was criticized roundly from the beginning by almost everyone – the general public, the politicians the media and so on. The discussions were about everything from the location to the architect to the design to the construction company as well as the cost. An inquiry in 2004 criticized everything from the management of the project through the costs. Despite the controversy, the building was approved of by architectural academics and critics, in 2008 a poll placed the building 4th on a list of the government buildings people would most like to see demolished. None the less, it is a building one should go see in Edinburgh if for no other reason than to see what all the fuss was about. The building is found a bit over a half a mile from the center of the City of Edinburgh and can be found by walking down the Royal Mile away from the castle. It is quite close to the Palace of Holyroodhouse. For information about the Parliament and visits to the building (Pàrlamaid na h-Alba), please consult the web page for the Parliament.  Scottish Parliament   |