£1.9m lottery boost for town centre revamp bid

The scheme to regenerate Rothesay town centre has received a £1.9 million funding boost from the National Lottery.

The grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund means the seafront in the Isle of Bute town will now benefit from almost £3m of repairs and improvements.

Argyll and Bute Council has already committed £200,000 to the scheme and £500,000 has also been secured from Historic Environment Scotland for investment in the town around Victoria and Montague streets.

Councillor Aileen Morton, leader of the council, welcomed the investment in the next phase of there generation scheme, which will be delivered between October 2017 and October 2022.

She said: “Residents and visitors will see positive changes and the Townscape Heritage scheme is a clear demonstration of our commitment with partners, including the Heritage Lottery Fund, to regener- ate the historic town centre. Our aim is to attract people to come and live, work and do business in our town centres across Argyll and Bute, and attracting investment is a crucial part of our work in building prosperity. We are looking forward to continuing the momentum and working closely with the local community and key partners.”