Plan to transform Lang Toun’s centre

Aplan to transform Kirkcaldy town centre into a vibrant and viable area is to be drawn up by Fife Council.

The move, agreed by members of Kirkcaldy area committee yesterday, pulls together five strands of work already under way for attracting more people to the high street.

Councillors said town centres of the future would no longer be based on large national retailers but would involve a mix of economic, social, cultural and leisure activities.

It will involve creating more desirable town centre housing, the growth of small specialist shops, the organisation of activities and events with the potential to bring more people into the area, the creation of an attractive env i ronm en t and accessibility such as public transport and car parking.

Fife Council’s Labour coleader David Ross said town centres provided an important focal point to allow people to come together.

“Our consultations confirm people need to be attracted by the offering in the town centre when it is no longer a hub for major retailers,” he said.

“The res tr ic t ions necessary around Covid-19 will continue to adversely affect activities in and around the town centre in the short to medium term but the overall aim is to create a vibrant and viable town centre that is sustainable over the long term.”

Mr Ross acknowledged the council could not deliver all aspects of the plan, which includes looking at rent and rates paid by town centre retailers, and suggested much of it would have to be led by the community.

He pointed to the establishment of n ew commun ity interest company Love Oor Lang To u n as one positive example of how Kirkcaldy could be promoted.

It has an active social media presence and highlights the activities of a number of local independent retailers.

Labour counc i l lor Alistair Cameron described the motion as a “statement of intent”.

The committee’s two Conservative councillors failed to find support for an amendmen t urg ing members to concentrate on small, achievable objectives which are already under way.

Kathleen Leslie said a long-term strategy was not deliverable in the Covid-19 climate and described the five pillars as “at best vague and at worst a recognition of what’s not been done so far”.