Condition of Hamilton Hall

Extract, John Hopkins, The Spike Bar, The Times, 2 October 2008

... In 2006 Hamilton Hall was sold by St Andrews University for an alleged £20m to Wasserman Real Estate Capital LLC, a Rhode Island preperty development firm. Wasserman's plans were to transform the hall into 23 luxury residences known as St Andrews Grand that would be open in time for the 2010 Open to be held here. Phil Mickelson is alleged to have paid a seven figure sum for a share in the project.

From that day to this, little appears to have happened and locals are concerned that the St Andrews landmark is showing its age.

In its ambition there is an echo of another huge project in Scotland, Donald Trump's $2bn resort on the north-east coast of Scotland. This resort, which has attracted support and criticism in equal measure, is said by Trump to benefit the locals when to these eyes it seems no one will benefit so much as Mr Trump himself. My feelings about this project remain the same in October as they were in July when I wrote: "Go home Mr Trump, go home." Currently the project is mired in red tape as planning permission is sought.

Hamilton Hall has not got that far. It has become a white elephant. "We had demand but not necessarily enough demand to carry the whole project through," David Wasserman, the firm's principal, said. "We learned the market is not deep enough for fractional residences at this point."

You can say that again. .....