Denny, Stenhousemuir and Grangemouth share in £60 million regeneration fund
UNDER-PRESSURE town centres are in line for a revamp after getting a share of a £60 million regeneration cash pot.
Denny, Stenhousemuir, Grangemouth and Bo'ness will get 2 million to revitalise their town centres and stimulate their economies.
The money comes from the Scottish Government which set up the fund to help the country's town centres through "economically-challenging times".
Falkirk Council bid for a share of the cash earlier this year after developing projects to bring in tourism and trade.
Ideas included installing digital signs in key locations, enhancing public art and improving WiFi access, infrastructure in Denny, shops and promoting the Falkirk-wide 'shop local' initiative.
And although the authority did not receive the 3 million it asked for, officials say the cash they got will be well spent.
Douglas Duff, head of economic development, said: "The award will be an important help to our town centres at a time when they are under economic pressure.
"The success of our bid was built upon the solid relationships we have with retailers and communities and we will be working closely with them during the next stages to make sure the approved projects make a real difference to our town centres."
The Scottish Government unveiled the scheme to help "hard-pressed" high streets earlier this year .
About 40 million has been allocated, with a further 20 million up for grabs later this year.
Details on exactly how the council can spend the money will be revealed later this week, but politicians have welcomed the news.
Labour MSP Cathy Peattie said: "I am very pleased. This was a manifesto commitment and we pushed to have it included in the budget.
"Hopefully, Falkirk Council can create new partnerships and bring about real change. Small town centres have been struggling, so I hope this money can make them more attractive and help to bring people back to shop in our centres."
Falkirk West MSP Michael Matheson said: "This is fantastic news for the town centres which will all share in the 2 million allocated to Falkirk Council.
"It has been a difficult time economically for many of our town centres, as seen by many of the empty shops. This money should go some way to making these town centres more attractive to shop in."
Councillor David Alexander, leader of Falkirk Council's SNP group, said: "Any money which is received from the Scottish Government to regenerate our local town centres is very welcome and 2 million is a sizeable amount. I'm sure the people of Falkirk will notice the difference."
Councillor Craig Martin, convener of Falkirk Council 's economic development committee, said: "Obviously I'm pleased and hope this money can go a long way to improving our town centres. The only wee issue I have is that 11 million of this fund went to cities, and eight million went to urban regeneration areas which have already had money from the government. My understanding was that the money was for town centres that hadn't had help before."
Graham Struthers, Forth Valley chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses, said: "We hope that each of the projects allocated funding will deliver enduring results for the communities involved and that the lessons learned from the most effective schemes shape future town centre policy."
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Thursday 24 May 2012
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