The construction of a new hospital in Edinburgh freed up this vast territory of the former hospital site in the center of the historical city. Norman Foster designed a project for the transformation of the site's built area which combines modernity with the preservation of historical heritage.

The principal objective of the project lies in the conception of the exterior spaces, roads, paths, squares, parks, and gardens, as an ensemble. The consistent and harmonious landscape imparts a sense of unity to the site. The ground, made up of a meadow traversed by narrow pathways, is planted in no apparent order with large trees, which however come to appear together as their own uniform layer.