Council elections 2022 – Ashley Graczyk – Sighthill/Gorgie Ward

Ashley Graczyk, has announced her intention to stand as an independent candidate in the forthcoming local government elections in May in the Sighthill/Gorgie ward,.

Ms Graczyk has launched her campaign with a five point Community Action Plan, which she says addresses key community priorities in the Sighthill/Gorgie ward. She said: “My campaign is focused on the most important issues for local residents, namely keeping our community clean and free from waste, creating new, affordable housing rather than endless blocks of student accommodation and protecting our parks and green spaces.

“Waste management is a huge issue in our local area, whether it be overflowing bins, dumped and flytipped items or dog waste. I have personally logged well over a thousand reports of waste and flytipping in the ward on behalf of residents in the past few years. Our area is the worst impacted by waste in the whole city, and we need urgent action on this issue which I will spearhead. If re-elected, I will pilot free waste collections for large items for local residents in our ward and increase street cleaning resources. The current waste collection fee creates a financial barrier and penalises the many people in our area who do not have private vehicles to visit the dump.”

Emphasising her record as a local campaigner on community issues, including her well-known opposition to the creation of new purpose-built student accommodation blocks rather than affordable social housing in her ward Ms Graczyk said: “Gorgie, Dalry and Westfield are being relentlessly targeted by Purpose Built Student Accommodation developers and I will continue to campaign against their planning proposals because affordable accommodation should be prioritised in our area.

“I am the only local Councillor who has stood up to unscrupulous developers seeking to bring unsustainable student megablocks to our community. I have successfully led community campaigns to oppose unsuitable proposals at the Scotmid and Dalry colonies sites, protecting the amenity of local people. I will continue to fight for new affordable housing in my ward and for Edinburgh Council’s existing policies to protect balanced communities to be strictly enforced.”

She also believes that the protection of parks and green spaces is key to the city’s economic recovery following the pandemic. She added: “We have all seen the vital importance of parks and green spaces to our mental health and wellbeing during the pandemic. I will seek to protect our local green spaces, supporting Friends of Parks groups and community-led projects to upgrade our local parks, paths and public spaces, making them accessible and welcoming for residents of all ages.”

The full detail of Cllr Graczyk’s plan is available on her website: www.ashleygraczyk.com