The Erskine Building in Dunfermline is to be sold at auction

The Yes U Are Partnership, a charity organisation, bought the rundown Pilmuir Street property in 2012 for £600,000 and outlined ambitious plans for a multi-purpose venue that would also bring jobs and host everything from weddings and concerts to art exhibitions and business conferences.

However, that vision was never fully realised and it will go under the hammer next month for a guide price of £230,000.

The former St Andrew's Erskine Church on Pilmuir Street will go under the hammer on February 22. (Image: Contributed)

Gavin Russell from Shepherd Chartered Surveyors, who will conduct the online property auction, told the Press: "We have already received a good level of interest in the short time the property has been on the market with a number of viewings lined up."

Labelled as the Erskine Building and described as a "development opportunity suitable for a variety of uses", the former church is next to the entrance to the Kingsgate Shopping Centre and has a gross area of just under 800 square metres.

Inside the Erskine Building, which was bought by the Yes U Are Partnership in 2012. (Image: Shepherd Chartered Surveyors)

Parts of the category B-listed building date back to 1798 and it was still used by the Church of Scotland up until 1998.

For a time it became a children's soft play facility, the Magical Kingdom, but it closed and the property lay empty and boarded up for years.

It was included in the Buildings at Risk register due to its "poor" condition and was described as "vulnerable to vandalism".

No-one from the partnership, a Dunfermline-based, multi-denominational Christian group, was available for comment before the Press went to print.

It's understood the building is no longer in their ownership and they are not the party that's selling it.

The inside of the Erskine Building is still recognisable as a former church. (Image: Contributed)

Mr Russell said his client's representative would prefer not to comment on the partnership, the work done to the property or the circumstances for the sale.

He added: "They would prefer to focus on the potential sale of the building itself with the opportunity for the purchaser to bring the building back into use for the community.

"There are various options for future use although interested parties should make their own enquiries to the local planning authority at Fife Council."

Inside the Erskine Building, which has a guide price of £230,000. (Image: Shepherd Chartered Surveyors)

The partnership was credited with an interest in the old church way back in January 2007, offering an alternative to JD Wetherspoon's who were given permission to open a £2 million 'superpub' in the building.

They had said the bar giant's proposals were a "bit limited for those not interested in or too old or young for pubs and clubs" and their vision was backed by the then MSP Scott Barrie.

Some of the renovation and refurbishment that has been completed in the Erskine Building. (Image: Shepherd Chartered Surveyors)

Wetherspoon's ditched their plans in December 2008 - the cost of renovations was thought to be the main obstacle - and instead pursued a new venture with the Guild Hall and Linen Exchange on High Street.

The partnership said money left in a legacy had helped them to buy the building in 2012, for a reported £600,000. 

The hall in the Erskine Building, used by cubs and scouts in days gone by. (Image: Shepherd Chartered Surveyors)

The cost of repairs and refurbishment was estimated to be £2m to £3m and they had anticipated opening in 2016. 

However, it was a massive undertaking to transform the almost derelict property and there were delays and funding issues, and the venue never fully opened. 

The auction takes place on February 22. You can find out more information and register at https://www.shepherd.co.uk/commercial-auctions/