Plans to transform empty factory

A meeting will take place tonight to gauge support for an ambitious community buy-out for a historic local building.

A group of local people has joined forces to develop plans to safeguard the future of the derelict Duracord site in the heart of Dunfermline.

The Pilmuir Street linen mill is currently in the hands of administrators.

But the Friends of Pilmuir Works now hope to breathe new life into the sprawling eyesore following similar community buy-outs in Edinburgh.

Its aim is to have a community driven project to turn the site, dubbed a “local liability”, into an asset for the community.

The meeting will be held at 7pm in studio 2 of the Carnegie Leisure Centre.

Local councillor Ian Ferguson said: “We are hoping for a community buy-out and at the meeting we hope to get people there to explain what can be done.”

While there will be speakers, the meeting will focus on local opinion and ideas.

The group has a Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pilmuirworks/ to keep the public informed.

The public is urged to get involved, saying: “We deserve better than this. This could be a great community asset.”

The factory, known locally as the Dunlop factory, closed in 2006 when it went under the Duracord banner.

It has lain empty ever since.