AN eyesore in Selkirk is to be demolished and replaced with housing.

For more than a decade the former Co-op, which neighbours the Victoria Hall, has been a cause for concern with community leaders.

Organisers of Scott's Selkirk covered up some of the deteriorating stonework with poetry boards in 2005.

But the stanzas from Scott, Hogg and others had, themselves, rotted and become unsightly.

Last month the Selkirk Conservation Area Regeneration Scheme (CARS) added fresh white boards ahead of artworks being installed.

The High Street eyesore had also been included on a Priority Buildings list to qualify for subsidised repairs and renovation.

But this week Colin Gilmour from the CARS group revealed the corner site has been removed from the grant scheme ahead of demolition work.

He said: "Negotiations between the owners and a third party have been ongoing and they will reach a conclusion soon.

"The building's owners are going to apply for permission to demolish and rebuild.

"I would imagine that the replacement building will be of a similar size.

"Demolition has never been the preferred option but I have been inside the building and it is probably for the best when you consider the condition."

The Selkirk CARS project has attracted almost £1.1 million of funding to help with the regeneration of the town's conservation area.

A total of 25 private properties have already benefitted from the scheme.

The six projects which remain on the Priority Buildings scheme are the Town Hall, Scotts Close, The Fleece, the Auld Kirk, 1 Tower Street and 3-to-5 Market Place.

Community councillors have welcomed the proposals for the former Co-op eyesore.

But Ian King, who is the body's planning representative, believes a design brief should be provided ahead of the rebuilding.

He said: "It is important to have a design brief for this prominent site to let the owners know what is acceptable and what isn't."

A joint project between Selkirk High School students and artists as the WASPS studios will see the most recent white boards decorated while planning negotiations continue.

Selkirkshire councillor Michelle Ballantyne hopes the art project can begin before the new boards are vandalised. She said: "We need to have artwork on the white boards as the surfaces are invitations for the type of artwork we don't want."