Former Brechin church on market

Maison Dieu Church comes with planning permission for the development of seven two-bedroom apartments.

A landmark Brechin building has come on the market with potential for development into housing.

Agents Verdala are inviting offers of over £69,000 for the former Maison Dieu Church on Witchden Road, which comes with planning permission for seven two-bedroom apartments.

The Victorian building has lain empty for several decades.

Amber Cochrane, the company’s marketing and PR director, said: “Verdala has been trading for one year and this is our first listing in Brechin which we are very excited about.

Agents Verdala are inviting offers over £69,000 for the building.

"As a team we feel incredibly fortunate to help find the perfect purchaser to breathe life back into Maison Dieu Church.

"We believe the building has been vacant since the early 1980s/late 70s, although we are having difficulty sourcing a year for this. The church was first marketed by the Church of Scotland in 1995 selling to an American sailor in 1997 who wished to restore the building.

Since posting on our Facebook page we have received lots of comments from locals. Attending the school Christmas church services at Andover Primary School seems to be a favourite memory for most.”

The current Maison Dieu Church is the third church to bear the name. The first was built in Maison Dieu Lane, when a corn barn and yard were converted into the first church in March 1802.

The second building was a newly-built church on the original site in 1849.

During the ministry of the Rev. William Gray, between 1885 and 1896, the church underwent a period of financial prosperity and the membership grew to the extent that the old building was unable to accommodate the entire congregation.

The congregation therefore decided to have a new church built in 1887 and a building fund was created immediately.

It was built by Sir George Washington Browne in 1891 in a late classical-neo Georgian style, with a Greek-style frontage overlooking Witchden Road. The building took 17 months to complete and it opened on April 17, 1892.

All interested parties are invited to contact Verdala for further details on 01382 847113. Viewing is strictly by appointment only and should also be arranged directly with the agents.