Former WWII Radar Station With Sweeping Views of the Scottish Coast Lists for £3.5 million

A Scottish seaside property that played an integral role in World War II is ready for its "modern fortress" overhaul.

Perched on the edge of a soaring cliff, overlooking crashing waves, the five-acre parcel, called Gin Head, has been on the market for £3.5 million (US$4.5 million) according to its listing with Goldsmith Estates.

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The site comes with approved design plans for a massive revamp of the space, turning what are essentially abandoned concrete bunkers into a 26,000-square-foot home.

The secluded parcel was built by the British navy in 1943 as a base for scientists to study captured German radar equipment. The scientists learned from the enemy devices and tested "deception and jamming" radar operations at Gin Head, techniques that were critical to Allied Forces’ successful landings on D-Day—June 6, 1944—in Normandy, France, according to Goldsmith Estates.

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Thousands of soldiers landed on France’s northern coast on D-Day to fight the German occupation—the operations developed at Gin Head allowed Allied Forces to deceive Nazi commanders into believing troops would land elsewhere in France, helping the Allied invasion efforts.

In the years since the war, the fortified buildings on the site continued to be used for research, but, for at least the last 10 years, have been unoccupied.

In 2005, a real estate company, Dunglass Ltd., in conjunction with home designer Claire Lloyd, purchased the property from research company BAE Systems. Ms. Lloyd declined to say how much they paid for the site.

Ms. Lloyd told Mansion Global, via email, that Dunglass Ltd. approached her with the idea of overhauling the historic, concrete buildings into a residential space.

The idea of transforming the aging radar station was overwhelming, she said, but she immediately said yes to taking on the challenge.

The location of the property— 30 miles from Scotland’s capital, Edinburgh—is "magical" Ms. Lloyd said.

"The large austere buildings sit perfectly in the Scottish landscape," she said. "Looking out from the windows is like looking at landscape paintings in motion."

Along with its connection to World War II, the property sits across from a much older remnant of history—the ruins of a 14th-century castle, called Tantallon.

North of Gin Head, there are views of a bird sanctuary on a rocky island jutting from the sea. Called Bass Rock, the protected site is home to the world’s largest colony of gannet birds, according to Goldsmith Estates.

Adding to its unique natural landscape, the property is also near an extinct volcano that soars more than 600-feet high.

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Ms. Lloyd said she initially worked on a design for seven separate residences on the land, but decided to go another way. She enlisted the help of her friend, architect Carl Pickering—and his firm took over the redesign. Gin Head, and its "modern fortress" revamp, has been on the market for over a year.

The current design calls for two separate villas, coinciding with the two main structures already on the property, which would be connected by an underground walkway with massive skylights. The buildings would become much more airy, with numerous glass walls.

Ms. Lloyd said she could not estimate how much building the new home would cost, but a buyer would have great flexibility in its creation—everything from the number of bedrooms to more specific amenities, like a pool or a movie theater, that he or she might want.

After many years of reworking ideas for the space, Ms. Lloyd said, she’s ready for a new owner to come in and "make their dreams come true" with a home at Gin Head.