The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Warning Union Street transformation ‘could bleed city centre dry’
ADundee property boss who lets to businesses on Union Street has warned about a lack of transparency and engagement over plans for the street.
Adam Hutcheson, who is the commercial director of Westport Property, has said the closing of the popular shopping district to cars, delivery vans and motorised vehicles was “pushed through” without first consulting with business owners.
And any delay in bringing Sustrans money to rebuild the “decaying” street furniture erected during the pandemic, the placement of Euro bins in front of shops and inadequate parking provision is a real worry to shop owners.
His comments come in the wake of the unveiling of plans to further redesign the thoroughfare – which connects the city centre with the Waterfront development.
Mr Hutcheson works with a number of businesses in the city centre and on Union Street in particular.
He warned banning parking from the city centre would have an adverse impact on smaller retailers and drive customers to “out-of-town shopping centres”.
“We now have a situation where we have a street that’s been permanently pedestrianised, pretty much without consultation,” he said.
“There are significant proposals that have been unveiled for these enhancements for a complete redesign of the street, and I really have to hope this funding does come through from Sustrans and the Scottish Government.
“But it might take until 2026. There could be a change of government then, that reallocates funds.
And that is six years, nearly, these changes will have been in place for, which are a challenge to many of the businesses there.
“This has all been arranged cart before horse.
“The street has been closed to traffic. There is a number of what I would call low-quality streetscape furniture, made from timber which has gone green and mouldy.
“Capital budgets at local authority level are also incredibly tight, which adds to my cynicism. What is the likelihood of this funding arriving by then?
“I worry we will end with
a half-baked project and we are left with Union Street, which has been effectively closed top-to-bottom, and businesses stuck in the middle of a poorly conceived project. “That is my biggest fear.” “And if the policymakers continue to make the city centre an unattractive environment for convenient and quick visits, the out-oftown shopping centres will continue to draw trade to the outskirts and bleed the city centre dry.”
Over the past three years, Dundee City Council has been working alongside the Unesco City of Design team
to create a concept of how city centre thoroughfare could be improved.
The project, which has been funded by the sustainable transport charity Sustrans, has brought together designers and the local community who have worked in tandem to create the proposal.
Plans for Union Street are available to view by members of the public and business owners alike.
The drawings and models will be kept on display at the Dundee Design House on Union Street until Friday.