analysis

Few Fifers will be unaware of Dunfermline’s place in Scotland’s history.

From The Bruce to Andrew Carnegie, palace to abbey, the area is steeped in tradition and heritage.

Meanwhile, a new multi-millionpound Dunfermline Carnegie Library and Galleries is due to open next year.

But casting a shadow over an area keen to put the town centre first in any planning decision has been the eyesore of the dilapidated Duracord factory, once a key player in the town’s linen trade.

Added to that has been the regret at the closure of Abbot House, Dunfermline’s oldest building and latterly home to a heritage centre.

A major study earlier this year said the Auld Grey Toun was punching well below its weight when it came to drawing in tourists.

Hampering efforts was a lack of joined up work among different bodies which look after its assets.

But now a brighter future could be on the cards with a groundswell of public goodwill which may lead to a community buy-out of the Pilmuir Works site and support for a proposal to breathe new life into Abbot House as a focal point in the heritage quarter.

The resting place of kings and queens may indeed enjoy a right royal renaissance soon.

A brighter future could be on the cards