Public Spaces Archive
Please use the links below to guide you through the page.
Better Barrhead Public Space Drop In Session - Tuesday the 19th of February
Better Barrhead Information Event: The Why and What of Barrhead Regeneration
Another Chance to come along to The Why and What of Regeneration 29/04/08
June 21st - June 25th
The inaugural design meeting of the Public Spaces group took place over two days June the 21st and June the 25th.
On the 21st we held a community day at Carlibar Primary School. The discussions on the day enabled the Better Barrhead team to get a good idea of the problems, hopes and aspirations that those attending had for the public spaces in their town.(There was also a follow up event in the same venue on the 25th of June as well as a meeting held for Main Street businesses that had been unable to attend the 21st. ).
On behalf of the regeneration team I would like to thank everyone who attended the events. Your input in this process is invaluable in terms of the public space projects and also ensures that we can demonstrate the benefits of the Council and the community working together towards a positive outcome for the town.
The next steps in the process involve the Better Barrhead team placing all the information gathered into a consultative report that will be uploaded to the website and sent out to the mailing list. Once we are satisfied that we have an accurate idea of what is desired there will be another round of events, displays and meetings aimed at finalising design concepts. Information about all future events will be provided nearer the time.
Finally, if you were present at any of the events or would like to get involved in the future and have any views on how we can improve how we work together with the community, please feel free to contact us and let us know. This process is a learning curve for us and we are hopefully improving all of the time but we are always happy to listen to ideas and comments from those involved.
Urban Design Framework Exhibition
A public exhibition on the Draft Urban Design Framework will be held at Barrhead Sports Centre between 30 September and 9 October. Staff from Gillespies and the Council's Regeneration Service will be available to answer questions and take comments on Thursday the 2nd October between 12 and 7pm. Local residents, businesses and anyone with an interest in the development of Barrhead's public spaces are being asked to complete a questionnaire at the exhibition, or an online version of the questionnaire here.
Raploch Study Trip - Thursday the 6th of December
Just a quick update to let you know that the study trip to the Raploch took place last Thursday and, despite the best efforts of the weather, it proved to be a popular and successful event. The trip was attended by a wide range of groups and individuals including Barrhead High, Barrhead Community Council, Auchenback Active and Barrhead Horticultural Society. The feedback provided by those attending was very positive with everyone coming away with a better understanding of the impact that community involvement can have on an area, some more ideas about what could be achieved in Barrheads public spaces and the wider benefits of a regeneration project.
On the day we were given a guided tour of the river walkway area, a public space project that has been developed in conjunction with local community representatives. A fairly basic path network had been transformed into a timeline, with granite set with engraved stories about the Raploch area had been set into the path at various intervals (see the image below for an example). The subject of the stories ranged from William Wallace to Billy Bremner, but all were relevant to the community of Raploch. The aim of these sets was firstly to create a more pleasant environment and secondly, and more importantly, to retain a sense of this being a community space. There were a range of other community based spaces along the walkway, a chess set marking out key dates and local myths and a play park featuring a compass point that guided you through the views surrounding the area (a decent vista including the Ochill and Stirling Castle).
It is this element of the work in Raploch that we hope to replicate in Barrhead. The public spaces that are soon to be created will undoubtedly be more attractive and better used if they reflect the community that they serve. For this to happen, we need the input of as many people from the community as possible so please keep your eyes out for information on future events which will be provided soon and if you can get involved, please do.
Some pictures of the Stirling trip are provided below will be made available online shortly , the IT editing software requires a slight upgrade before I can do this easily. In the meantime if you have any questions about the Public Spaces group, would like to sign up to receive information or would like to get involved please contact Gavin Russell on 0141 577 3499 or by email at gavin.russell@eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk.
Raploch Playpark Art
This piece of art is part of a playpark developed by the local community. The attraction of this piece is that it acts as a pleasant public space as well as being a feature that children can play on. |
The Raploch Compass
This points on this compass provide information about the various views that can be seen from the park. These include the Ochill hills, the river Forth, Stirling Castle and,until it was realigned slightly, the bedrooms of the houses nearest the park. |
Community Chess Board
This picture shows the chess board which is inculded in the centre of the park. The board contains cryptic references to local tales and legends with the aim that those who visit the board are inspired to learn about their local area. The board is also used for chess games in the summer where local children dress up as the various pieces and challenge the local chess group. The benefits of the chess board is that it has created an attractive public space which can be used as a focal point for the entire community |
Community Chess Board 2
This image shows the chess board in more detail. If you can avoid the rain soaked nature of the picture you will see that the green line is actually a representation of the river Forth while the text shows, as mentioned before, cryptic references to local myths and tales. |
Working in the Rain
This picture explains why all those who attended the study trip came down with a cold the next day |
Raploch Timeline
This picture shows one of the timeline slabs that are noted in the text above. These timelines again add to the feeling that this park belongs to the community. It also ensures that the changes brought on by the regeneration project are seen as the continuation of the areas history. |
Better Barrhead Public Spaces Drop-In Session - Tuesday 19th of February
As most of you hopefully already know, the Better Barrhead regeneration team will shortly be appointing a design consultant to work with the community and the council on the design of public spaces in Barrhead. We really hope that as many people as possible get involved with this design work and so we are holding four drop in sessions on Tuesday the 19th of February at the Auchenback and Dunterlie Resource Centres where we will give a quick talk through the Regeneration Framework, outline what we hope to achieve with the growing partnership with the community and give people a chance to ask some questions of the regeneration team.
The times for each session are as follows
Dunterlie Resource Centre
1.30pm - 2.30pm
5.30pm - 6.30pm
Auchenback Resource Centre
12pm - 1pm
7pm - 8pm
The sessions will be open to all so if you are unable to make it along for the start please feel free just to drop in at any time. The sessions will be informal and there is no pressure to do anything other than listen. These sessions are aimed at those who have not yet been involved in the Public Space work and want to find out more, but If you have come along to previous events and want to get involved you will be more than welcome.
As ever, if you have any questions or just want to confirm you are attending, please use the contact details below:
Gavin Russell
Phone: 0141 577 3499
email: gavin.russell@eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk
Pat Finnell
Phone 0141 577 8606
email: pat.finnell@eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk
Better Barrhead Information Event: The Why and What of Barrhead Regeneration?
The latest Public Spaces event has been developed as a result of comments made informally and formally over the past few months. The Better Barrhead team would like to offer you the chance to attend an information session related to the Regeneration Framework. At this event we will do our best to explain why the regeneration project was started up, what the point of each project is and to have a discussion about the overall aims.
We realise that this may seem like a bit of a backward step given the ongoing focus on public spaces but we have been regularly asked to try and explain the Better Barrhead project a little better and the event should be informative and useful I know from my own personal experiences that there are concerns and confusion regarding the purpose of some of the projects.and we will do our best during this event to clarify as much of the detail as is possible.
The event will take place on Thursday the 13th of March at the Voluntary Action Offices, 56 Kelburn Street, Barrhead. At the moment we would like to offer you the opportunity to attend either a daytime event or an evening event. We would greatly appreciate if you could let us know if you wish to come along and if you could specify your preferred time:
Daytime Event: 1pm – 3pm
Evening Event: 7pm – 9pm
Please use the contact details noted below to let us know or to ask any questions about the event.
Gavin Russell
Phone: 0141 577 3499
email: gavin.russell@eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk
Pat Finnell
Phone: 0141 577 8606
email: pat.finnell@eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk
Public Spaces Update 13/03/08
The most recent Public Spaces event, The Why and What of Barrhead Regeneration went ahead at the Voluntary Action Offices on Thursday the 13th of March. The event was another chance to get to know the Barrhead Masterplan and what is proposed for the town. We held a 2 hour session where everyone got a chance to ask questions about the project, as ever, there was not enough time to do justice to every question but I am pleased to report that there was a good turnout, including some new faces and that the feedback from the event was positive.
In addition to the event, some individuals who could not make it along to the 2 hour session met with members of the Better Barrhead team later in the day and were given a chance to look through the and to discuss their views with each other. There were a few other interested people who couldn't make it along and we will be doing all we can to arrange another session so that they can get involved. If you are interested in meeting the regeneration team, please contact Gavin Russell on gavin.russell@eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk or on 0141 577 3499 and we do our best to get another group together.
If you are not on the mailing list for Public Spaces and would like to be, please contact Gavin Russell.
Public Spaces Goes Back to School 01/04/08
The most recent public spaces event takes place on Wednesday the 2nd of April at Barrhead High when the Public Spaces project goes back to school. Members of the Better Barrhead team will be working with pupils from Barrhead and St Lukes HIgh School to help them understand why Barrhead is being regenerated and what role they can play in the public space projects.
This event is just the first in a series of events aimed at ensuring that school pupils and youth groups are involved in the Public Spaces project. If you are interested in finding out more please contact Gavin Russell on 0141 577 3499 or by email on gavin.russell@eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk.
Another Chance to come along to The Why and What of Regeneration 29/04/08
The Better Barrhead team will be giving people another chance to meet with them and find out about the Regeneration Masterplan for Barrhead.
As before, we will have an informal and hopefully enjoyable event where we will do our best to explain why the regeneration project was started up, what the point of each project is and to answer any questions that you may have. The format proved very successful last time so hopefully anyone who did not make it along last time will be able to attend and take part.
The event will be held on Tuesday the 29th of March at the Arthurlie Church, Ralston Road, Barrhead. There will be an afternoon event and an evening event and it would be extremely helpful if you could contact us and let us know if you wish to attend, use the contact details provided at the end of this update.
The afternoon event will be held between 1-3pm
The evening event will be held between 7-9pm
Contact Details
Gavin Russell
Phone: 0141 577 3499
email: gavin.russell@eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk
Pat Finnell
Phone: 0141 577 8606
email: pat.finnell@eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk