Construction of the new Museum of Aberdeenshire and Peterhead Library is due to begin in June, but Aberdeenshire Council has confirmed that a separate refurbishment of the former Public Library and Arbuthnot Museum building will not proceed for now.
Construction of a new Museum of Aberdeenshire and Peterhead Library is expected to begin in June, marking a major step in Aberdeenshire Council’s Cultural Quarter plans for Peterhead town centre.
The project will be delivered by Hub North Scotland and centred on Arbuthnot House on Broad Street. The new development is expected to open in late 2028 and will bring together a new town library and what the council describes as its first shire wide museum. The announcement confirms progress on one of Peterhead’s most significant cultural projects, but it also comes with a setback. Aberdeenshire Council has decided not to proceed, at this stage, with the planned refurbishment of the former Public Library and Arbuthnot Museum building on St Peter Street. The council says rising construction and material costs have required it to redirect capital funding so that the main Broad Street museum and library project can go ahead.
The decision creates a clear divide in the Cultural Quarter programme. The new museum and library will move into construction, while the future of the former library and museum building remains unresolved.
The Broad Street project is supported by £20 million from the UK Local Regeneration Fund, alongside council investment and other national funding streams. It sits within a wider programme of investment in Peterhead, which the council says includes its continued commitment to £150 million in the town. That wider investment includes the planned replacement Peterhead Academy, intended to provide a modern and fully accessible learning environment.
The Cultural Quarter programme also sits alongside the ongoing redevelopment of Macduff Marine Aquarium, another part of the council’s cultural and visitor economy plans for the north east.
At the centre of the Peterhead scheme is Arbuthnot House, a prominent Broad Street building formerly used for civic purposes. The council’s plans will see the building restored and extended to create a museum and library complex. The library is expected to occupy the ground floor of the new extension, while museum galleries will be located through the restored house and upper levels.
The new museum is intended to bring more of Aberdeenshire’s collections into public view. The council says the galleries will include natural history, archaeology, social history and art, with many objects brought out of storage for the first time. A dedicated Peterhead gallery will sit alongside wider displays telling stories from across Aberdeenshire.
The building will also include a temporary exhibition space capable of hosting touring national shows, flexible workshop and learning areas, a community gallery, a restaurant with outdoor terrace and a small retail area. The council says music, interactive displays, film and Doric language will be used in the interpretation.
For Peterhead, the project has more than one purpose. It is a library replacement, a museum development, a town centre regeneration scheme and an attempt to create a stronger visitor destination. For Aberdeenshire more widely, the significance lies in the proposed shire wide museum. The council area has extensive heritage collections, but the new institution is intended to give them a more visible public home.
The more difficult part of the announcement concerns the former Public Library and Arbuthnot Museum building on St Peter Street. Aberdeenshire Council has confirmed that the planned refurbishment of that building will not now proceed as part of the Cultural Quarter project.
The council says significantly increased construction and material costs associated with the wider project have made it necessary to reallocate capital funding. It has also confirmed that Peterhead Library will continue to operate from the town’s Leisure and Community Centre for the next few years, because the former library building is not fit for purpose.
That explanation may be financially practical, but it does not remove the heritage issue. The St Peter Street building is itself part of Peterhead’s civic history. Historic Environment Scotland lists Peterhead Library and Arbuthnot Museum as a Category C listed building, designed by Duncan McMillan and built between 1891 and 1893 as a purpose built Carnegie public library and museum. It is built in pink Peterhead granite and includes a clock tower with a dome and cupola.
The council has said it recognises the disappointment the decision will cause and remains committed to working with stakeholders to identify future funding streams for the building. It has also said it will fast track dialogue with community partners and stakeholders to consider future use.
The council’s next test will be whether it can identify a credible funded future for the St Peter Street building before delay further limits what can be done with it.
Aberdeenshire Council co leader Stewart Adams said he was pleased construction would begin in June on the new library and museum. He said the project would create a new space celebrating the people, stories and collections of the region, and described it as an investment in tourism, culture and the local economy in north Aberdeenshire.
He also acknowledged the decision not to proceed with the St Peter Street refurbishment, saying rising construction costs had forced difficult choices in order to deliver the Museum of Aberdeenshire and new Peterhead Library.
Council co leader Anne Stirling said the start of construction was an important milestone for the region and said the completed project would strengthen the north east economy by improving Aberdeenshire’s tourism offer and creating opportunities for local businesses. She said the decision on the former library and museum building had been difficult, but that the council had a duty to safeguard the public purse and ensure capital investment delivered clear value and long term benefit.
The council’s position is that redirecting funds now allows the Broad Street project to move forward. That is a clear choice. It prioritises the new museum and library over the immediate refurbishment of another historic civic building.
The public interest question is not whether the council should ignore rising costs. It cannot. Construction inflation has affected public projects across Scotland and the wider UK. The question is whether the council can maintain public confidence by setting out a realistic future for the St Peter Street building while the Broad Street development proceeds.
The new museum and library may become a significant asset for Peterhead. It could increase access to Aberdeenshire’s collections, provide improved library facilities, support education and community activity, and give the town centre a stronger cultural focus. The inclusion of a community gallery and local Peterhead heritage displays may also help ensure the project is not only a regional showcase but a local institution.
But the decision to shelve the St Peter Street refurbishment means the Cultural Quarter now carries an unresolved element. The council has secured a path for the main project. It has not yet secured a public future for the former library and museum building.
That is the balance of the announcement. Peterhead is moving closer to a new cultural centre on Broad Street. Aberdeenshire’s collections are expected to gain a more substantial public home. The town’s library is due to be replaced as part of that development. But one of Peterhead’s older civic buildings has been left outside the funded plan, and its future remains dependent on further discussion and future funding.
The June construction start is therefore a real milestone, but not a simple conclusion. It marks progress on the Museum of Aberdeenshire and the new Peterhead Library. It also opens a second question, about how Peterhead protects the civic buildings that helped carry its cultural life before the new quarter was planned.
