Hi AcidC4
Yes thanks, it does help
Your explanation ties in exactly with what i've pieced together since my original post; including the use of the 'Irish diggers' as a means to minimise local knowledge of the existence of the bunker/underground shelter.
I do remember the floor - from my time as a customer - but by the time of my recce (as per my post) the floor had taken quite a beating (over its lifetime and during the closure/emptying of the shop) and was in a pretty bad state.
There were other other interesting features about the building too; the nooks and crannys of the rooms on the upper floor that would be distinctly out of place in a modern office/unit. I assume that they were typical of building style back in the late 20's/30's ?
I've also wondered what permission was required from the owners of the tenements flat(s) adjoining the then sub-post office to excavate their back court to a depth of 5 metres(?) to allow for the construction of the bunker. Never mind how such an excavation could have impacted on the integrity of the fabric of their building. Also, i wonder if the flat owners were compensated for the disruption and/or compliance with secrecy? My guess is, if they had been told of the reason, they would have supported it as part of the (pre) "war effort".
I keep meaning to find out if any of the current flat owners/renters are aware of what's underneath their washing lines but it's a bit of a random question to chap someones door with; "excuse me, sorry to bother you but, do you know that your tenement back court has a ww2 bunker under it, built in secret by irish diggers to hold store important paperwork in case the nazis bombed Dennistoun?". I can already hear the reply, "Jean, fone the polis, there's a crazy man at the door!"
In relation to the unfinished car park (previously) attached to Somerfield, it was always an odd one, a massive 3 storey concrete carpark slap bang in the middle a densely populated area and unfortunately, due to its extended period of dis-use, it was always going to attract youthful vandalism
Think it was a bit of a folly, only being in use for a few short years despite the novel idea, the cost of maintaining/servicing it coupled with the lack of use, meant it was a big white elephant. I was in it a few times through different reasons; one idea was to turn it into a local community multi-use work/studio space (that idea didn’t get passed being an idea), another time the company that I worked for considered restoring it as a working car-park but the cost of renovation coupled with ‘tricky’ security considerations deemed it unviable and again the idea fell off the table.
Cheers again, AcidC4