- Hogwallops
- Forthquarter on the market for sale
- Heat Heroes for Families
- Edinburgh World Heritage event
- ESPC help football club with new strips
Our amazing photo today is by our photographer John Preece who took the shots of the Hogwallops yesterday morning. More details of their show here.
National Grid who own the Forthquarter site including the Granton gasometer have put the site on the market.
The 40 acres of land has been called an exceptional opportunity for mixed use development including housing. The gas holder might be used for other things but there is a precedent in siting houses within a gasometer like this. In Dublin there is a whole development of apartments within former gas facility. However in Edinburgh the Granton gasometer needs repaired and any buyer will have to demonstrate their ability to conduct that work.
Benjamin Gaunt, from National Grid Property, said: “National Grid is keen to unlock the potential of this area and bring forward much needed family housing for the city. To do that, we need to address the situation with the disused gasholder. We have asked for consent to remove the gasholder which is now redundant to National Grid’s operational requirements.
“As part of its consideration of the application to remove the holder, the City of Edinburgh Council and Historic Environment Scotland have asked us to market the gasholder and surrounding site to ascertain whether there is any interest from a purchaser willing and able to develop the site and repair the gasholder. As current owners, we are obliged to ensure that any interested parties are credible buyers and are able to invest appropriately in the repair of the gasholder.”
Cushman & Wakefield are selling the property and details are here.
If no purchaser comes forward then National Grid will continue to regenerate the Forthquarter area.
Scottish environmental charity, Changeworks has vowed to make a difference in the lives of some of the Edinburgh’s most vulnerable families, by launching its Heat Heroes for Families initiative.
The project kicked-off in April, thanks to a £49,982 funding boost from the ScottishPower Energy People Trust. It will reach out to an estimated 355 families with children under the age of 16 and help them access affordable warmth through a structured programme of energy advice and financial guidance. Together with its delivery partner, Community Help and Advice Initiative (CHAI), Changeworks will help parents maximise their household income, by accessing energy efficiency measures and unclaimed benefits.
Changeworks has a long standing relationship with the Trust, whose representatives met with the initiative’s Edinburgh team today, Wednesday, 27 July. The Energy People Trust has previously supported two Changeworks projects which generated substantial benefits for the local community; the Cosy Kids 2 project reached over 240 Edinburgh families and helped maximise their incomes by almost £40,000 overall.
Ann Loughrey, Company Secretary and Trustee, ScottishPower Energy People Trust said: “The Trust is pleased to be working with Changeworks yet again to help the team there deliver a really beneficial project to help some of the most vulnerable families across Edinburgh. It was great to meet with the staff, volunteers and project users today and see first-hand the impact the project is already having within the local community, just three months in.”
Sam Mills, Head of Projects at Changeworks said, “Support from ScottishPower Energy People Trust enables us to provide direct support to families in most need in Edinburgh. In partnership with the Community Help and Advice Initiative, our specialist advisors and trained volunteers give families practical energy efficiency advice, access to benefits and income maximisation support. Heat Heroes for Families helps people to reduce their heating and electricity bills, maximise household budgets and keep their homes affordably warm.”
Photo by Stewart Attwood
Edinburgh World Heritage have been in contact to tell us about an event they are organising later in the month:
Heritage and Conflict
Thursday August 25th, 20.00 – 21.30
The Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, EH2 1JQWith a capital among the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Syria has been home to some of the world’s most ancient civilisations. But after five years of armed conflict, the country has suffered a devastating loss of cultural heritage.
At an exclusive Edinburgh World Heritage lecture, Professor Maamoun Abdulkarim, Director-General of Antiquities and Museums, Arab Republic of Syria, will talk about the appalling destruction of priceless monuments in many parts of the country as well as the impressive efforts led by his team to conceal important museum collections across Syria from further harm. He will call upon the international community to redouble its efforts to help Syria protect, and in places rebuild, its heritage for the benefit of all humanity.
The lecture will be followed by a drinks reception to welcome Professor Abdulkarim to Edinburgh.
A charge of £5 at the door will be made for members of Edinburgh World Heritage, £10 for non-members to help cover the costs of the event.
ESPC has been helping young football enthusiasts by providing the football strips for a team of six and seven year old players who are members of Kirkliston and South Queensferry club (KSQ).
Formed in 1991 to foster football within Kirkliston, South Queensferry and the surrounding areas, the team welcomes children aged five years old and up. They are members of the East of Scotland Soccer Development Association, and all coaches are volunteers who have been officially trained.
ESPC are sponsoring the 2009 team for the next two years, made up of 40 six and seven year old players, providing new kits for them to wear on match days.
Amy Walker, marketing manager at ESPC, said: “At ESPC we believe it’s important to help support and work alongside the local community and to encourage activity amongst young people. We also sponsor Hearts, Hibs, the Spartans and Dunfermline Football Club. It’s great to see the players all sporting their football strips and we wish them good luck.”
For more information on KSQ visit their website at clubwebsite.co.uk/ksq/.
Photo Michael Gillen.
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Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
