Chance to vote on windfall spending

RESIDENTS in Arbroath will be given the chance to vote on how a £50,000 government windfall is spent.

Arbroath Community Council will hold a voting day at St Andrew’s Church on March 10 from 11am-7pm.

The voting day will decide what should be done with the £62,000 participatory budgeting grant awarded by the Scottish Government Communities Choices Fund.

In 2016, a workshop was carried out by representatives from the local authority, agencies, community groups, businesses and members of the public to suggest ways to improve Arbroath using an agreed action plan and framework.

Accessibility was identified as one of the areas needing improvement. The community council successfully applied for financial help to assist with the accessibility issues and was awarded £62,000.

The first part of the project is £50,000 for members of the public to vote on projects for the town centre relating to accessibility projects.

Votes can be cast on options including installing new fingerpost signs, creating a map and mini-booklet for Arbroath, installing modern bins and improving the signage for the High Street walkway.

The second part of the project is forming a panel or a mini public for £12,000 to learn and discuss how the council sets its budget and how local people can influence it in future years.