Front green plans ‘smack up to date’
Plans to upgrade Lochgilphead front green are ‘smack up to date’, according to community council convener Andy Buntin.
With money from Tarbert and Lochgilphead Redevelopment Fund, Lochgilphead Community Council’s plans to upgrade the front green and Colchester Square include more car parking spaces, with designated disabled bays, a playpark, a raised cycle route and crossing lights.
At a community council meeting on Monday February 11, however, council member Betty Rhodick stressed the most important upgrade, which will take up most of the money and effort, will be drainage.
Mrs Rhodick said: ‘A lot of the money will be spent on drainage.’
Mr Buntin added: ‘If we sort the drainage, we can build on it. We’ve got an infrastructure then that can be added to. We want to be able to add to it in the future and the team are fully aware of all that.’
With Storm Erik wreaking havoc across Mid Argyll, causing flooding over the front green in Lochgilphead, as well as disruption in Tarbert and Inveraray the previous weekend, flood defences are at the forefront of local residents’ minds.
Robert Millar pointed out that businesses and housing have taken to putting ‘sandbags outside their doors’ in preparation for stormy weather on the front.
Mr Buntin added: ‘And it’s going to get worse. Global warming or climate change, whatever you want to call it, is here.’
The project has a steering group consisting of representatives from the Lochgilphead Phoenix Project, Mid Argyll Chamber of Commerce, Mid Argyll Youth Development Services, Transport Scotland, Sustrans and officers from Argyll and Bute Council. The team, led by Nick Wright, also includes design team ERZ, appointed by Argyll and Bute Council, and flood prevention team members met for initial design discussions on January 14.
A timetable outlining the plans has been given to the community council, which include visits to businesses on Argyll Street and Lochnell Street. These are designed to gather opinions on the most important aspects of the project, together with a drop-in meeting on Saturday March 9 and a display of the developing designs on Saturday April 13.
The project is expected to be completed in early 2020.
‘If we sort the drainage, we can build on it. We want to be able to add to it in the future.’