Council remains against £40,000 maket pod plan

.. but will not stand in way of move

Mercat Cross and City Centre Community Council last week agreed not to stand in the way of a series of spending proposals for the Top of the Town.

But community councillors have again made clear their opposition to the £40,000 investment in ‘market pods’ to be used in connection with so far unspecified events planned for the area

Other cash has been set aside for Darnley Street streetscape improvements, including the creation of a speed bump.

Stirling Council has earmarked more than £300,000 for projects in the Top of the Town and there had been discussion on how the money was to be spent.

However, at their meeting last month, community councillors said the proposals for the pods and improvements to Darnley Street had come “out of the blue” and had not been subject of proper consultation.

Community Council chairman Sara MacMillan said: “We had a separate meeting to discuss this and looked at as much information as possible and we came to the conclusion that the best thing to do was to accept what was happening from the council but point out that we didn’t ask for the market pods, and have no use for them.”

Community councillor Andrew Szwebs said they had no detail about the way in which the pods would be used, and he felt the spending proposals were being “railroaded through” without proper consultation.

Community councillor Natalie Ross said: “The works in Darnley Street were not something we had asked for but if it is going ahead, it’s going ahead.

“We thought there was a safety issue with the proposal to have a speed bump there.”

She added: “We are prepared to accept that we draw a line under this but going forward – in terms of discussions on the City Deal proposals – point out we expect much better engagement with the council.”

Regarding the pods, Stirling Ghost Walk proprietor David Kinnaird said: “There is going to be significant expenditure on something that is not wanted and is not needed. And there doesn’t seem anyone lined up to use the pods.”

Stirling Council told the Observer last month they had held discussions on the spending with community council, residents and businesses, and remained committed to working with everyone in the community.