PLANS have been lodged to turn a Charles Rennine MacKintosh building into a restaurant specialising in pasta.

The plans for The Lighthouse building, which sits on the corner of Mitchell Street and Mitchell Lane, would see the ground floor and part of the basement turned into an eatery called SUGO, owned by the same company behind the well-know Paesano pizza outlets.

The Grade B listed building was originally occupied by Reuters news agency before the Herald newspaper moved in.

It was vacated in 1980 and remained empty for a number of years until the 1990s when it became the home for an Architectural and Design Centre, as a result of Glasgow putting itself forward in 1996 as a suitable candidate for the City of Architecture and Design 1999.

The ground floor was most recently occupied by a film/TV production company.

The proposed new venture will specialise in freshly-made pastas in a 'tasteful' modern interior setting, and customers will be able to see their meals being cooked, as well the pasta being made as they dine.

The restaurant will extend along the length of the Mitchell Street elevation and benefit from the row of windows onto Mitchell Street. Access to the basement area will be via an existing spiral staircase.

Both male and female cloackroom and toilet facilities will be in the basement area, as well as storage, chill room staff facilities and offices.