New town was built on strong foundations

Sir, – For those of us who supported the creation of a Scottish parliament, it was a delight that Jenny Gilruth MSP hosted an event there to celebrate Glenrothes at 70 (The Courier, June 9).

Thanks too to Linda Ballingall and her colleagues at the Glenrothes Area Heritage Centre and the Kingdom Centre management for helping to make it happen.

It was an evening of nostalgia as well as a chance to look forward at what the town might achieve in the rest of this century.

It had already been given a boost in James Crawford’s BBC documentary series Scotland from the Sky when he praised the former new town’s achievements in urban planning and landscaping.

Although the area is often portrayed negatively in some sections of the media, Mr Crawford did a lot to redress the balance in his programme.

Two other matters should be considered in terms of what has contributed to civic pride in the town.

One was the detailed work done in the 1990s by the Development Corporation Board and its officials to ensure central government provided finance for the Rothes Halls complex.

The other is the work done in the 1970s to ensure that the town became the headquarters for Fife Regional Council – a decision carried by a very narrow margin.

By the 1990s when local government was reformed again there was hardly a murmur of complaint that it should be the centre of the new single tier authority.

Only the wilfully blind would deny the town today faces enormous social and economic challenges today. Those battles won in yesteryear have ensured it is better equipped to cope with them.

Bob Taylor.

Shiel Court, Glenrothes.

Picture: Wullie Marr. Jenny Gilruth MSP attends a meeting at Rothes Halls.