Steelyard is on meeting agenda
Bathgate Precinct and Steelyard were on the agenda at the most recent meeting of Bathgate Community Council.
The meeting was attended by councillors Willie Boyle, Harry Cartmill and Charles Kennedy as well as members of the public.
Among several items that were raised at the meeting were issues relating to seating in the precinct as well as the general state of The Steelyard which was described by more than one as a “disgrace”.
The current seating was deemed “uncomfortable” as there is no back support.
Suggestions were also made that bike racks should be erected in the precinct and Steelyard since the current locations of others are not convenient if shopping in the town centre.
Community council member David Main said: “In addition it was noted that all the objections to the proposed development on the green corridor between Armadale and Bathgate aka Sibbald’s Brae had now been successfully lodged with the council.
“While still on the subject of planning, it was noted the Glen Turner Distillery had submitted plans to expand its current site at Starlaw further west.
“Concern was expressed that this might ultimately lead to the merging of the two towns. However, it was pointed out that the M8 was still an effective barrier to this taking place.”
David said that work on analysing the results of The Big Bathgate Survey carried out by Donald Stavert on behalf of the community council with funding support from West Lothian Council is still ongoing.
David continued: “In general from a brief look at the report nearly 49 per cent of those surveyed rated Bathgate as above average or excellent as a place in which to live and work. This compares very favourably with the 11 per cent of those who said that living and working here was below average or poor.
“The principal aim of the report is to try and find out what folk in the town like most and least about it and see what can be done to improve life for everyone in Bathgate. The full report can be found on the community council’s website.”
David added work on securing funding for the proposed establishment of several wildlife interpretation boards at the pools at Wester Inch is also continuing.
He explained: “A preliminary application for £2000 has now been submitted to the Postcode Lottery Community Trust Fund. In addition we have now received an offer of assistance with litter picking and landscaping work from Scottish Water and have received clarification from the ScotRail Community Trust Fund regarding our eligibility to seek funding from them, which we are.
“Furthermore, several members of the Bathgate History Group, who were in attendance at the meeting also mentioned the fact that that group had been working on several maps of the town - and beyond - to get people by using these maps to learn about some of its history by walking through the town and beyond to the Bathgate Hills with these maps as guides.
“Finally, mention was made of the establishment of a Community Development Trust in an attempt to raise money for the town so that any money obtained from assets managed by this Trust might then be ploughed back into the town in a variety of ways to help regenerate the town socially, economically and environmentally in conjunction with the range of other agencies that currently work in the town.
“A meeting to look at this exciting new project in more detail will be held in the Partnership Centre, Bathgate, on August 30 at 11am. The next meeting of the community council itself will be held on Thursday, September 13, in the Partnership Centre at 7pm.”
The report is to find out what folk in Bathgate like most and least