The Scottish Property Federation (SPF) has announced that Kevin Sullivan has been appointed its new chair, succeeding Michaela Sullivan.
Robertson, who is also managing director of KR Developments, starts his tenure after a year of severe disruption to the property sector and the wider Scottish economy. The SPF, in a statement, said that his appointment comes as the shift towards post-pandemic recovery and rejuvenation begins.
Robertson said:
“After an immensely difficult period for communities and businesses across Scotland, my number one priority is to ensure the property industry is in a strong position to play a leading role in our national recovery. This will mean addressing long-term challenges in addition to issues that need to be resolved quickly, such as our outdated business rates system.”
Robertson added:
‘If we take the plight of our town centres as an example, the pandemic has hastened the need to rejuvenate our high streets with retail rapidly shifting online, while other sectors have been hit by low footfall as a result of home working. There are no quick fixes, but we must use this crisis to reimagine how we use such spaces for economic and social benefit in the future and build a collective vision for how to enact that change.”
The SPF has recently called for more to be done to attract investment into Scotland’s built environment and has published a recovery focused action plan ahead of the Holyrood elections next month. The plan sets out a number of ways that the industry and government can work together to reduce barriers to investment, enhance Scotland’s infrastructure and create great places.
The departing Michaela Sullivan is to join East Lothian Council as head of planning services and economic development.
