PLANS to develop two gap sites in a massive new development in the Merchant City have got the go-ahead.

They are the final pieces in a multi-million pound scheme which will result in almost 1,200 private flats and student rooms, a hotel and new retail.

Candleriggs Ltd has already been granted planning permission to transform an area of cleared land which has been left largely derelict since the closure of Goldberg's department store in the 1990s - one of the biggest gap sites in the whole of the city centre.

It was bought by Selfridges as the site for a major new department store but the plan was abandoned.

Candleriggs Ltd, which bought the site, has already been granted permission for 132 high quality apartments for sale, 372 new apartments for private rent, a 124 bedroom hotel, 582 rooms for student accommodation and retail space.

The firm has since bought two additional parcels of land allowing a continuous frontage to be created along both Trongate and Candleriggs.

The infill sites will allow an extra 63 private rented homes to be built, an additional four student rooms and extra ground floor shopping.

City planners have approved the plans for the two gap sites meaning planning permission is now in place for the entire site.

Candleriggs Quarter will cover almost an entire street block bounded by Hutcheson Street, Trongate, Canderiggs and Wilson Street.

It will result in one of the biggest city centre developments since Buchanan Galleries was built in the 1990s.

The developer said the scheme will revitalise an important block in the Merchant City and will bring new vitality to Argyle Street.

It added: "The brownfield site offers an important opportunity upon which to complement the wider mixed use regeneration that has been evidenced in the Merchant City over recent years."

A design statement which was submitted to planners reads: "This strategy makes a series of public places whilst generally responding to the grain of the surrounding urban form.

"Throughout the public edges of the scheme the intention is to place shops, bars and cafes at street level to give a real possibility of street life and activity throughout the site.

"At the corner of Candleriggs and Trongate a new convenience store is intended and it is hoped this large branded store will help draw High Street retailers from Argyll Street onto this part of Trongate."

A council spokesperson confirmed the project is one of the biggest to be undertaken in the city centre in years, and it is hoped the scheme will bring a massive boost to the economy and lives of locals.

Existing buildings will now be demolished to make way for the development - with unlisted buildings being cleared and listed buildings being "partially demolished" with regards to facade retention and alterations.

The application report adds: "The proposals presents a suitable and viable development solution that will provide a positive contribution to the final redevelopment and regeneration of the area, and one that can provide a positive contribution to the surrounding area in terms of design and townscape, including bringing much needed vitality and viability to Argyle Street."