A £56m regeneration project to the north of Glasgow has got underway with the development of a £7.6m leisure centre and new link road.
The project in Kirkintilloch, East Dunbartonshire includes a 2.5 mile link providing direct access to the M80.
Duncan Hamilton, project director for the Kirkintilloch Initiative (KI), a partnership between East Dunbartonshire council and NHS Greater Glasgow, said: “This new road is the missing link for the area’s economy.
“It will open up a whole swathe of land and improve access to the 10-acre Woodilee Industrial Estate.”
The road will take around 18 months to build, after which work will start on other projects. “The regeneration scheme has a five-to-seven year horizon,” said Hamilton.
The leisure centre is due to open in autumn 2007.
Additional elements of the wider regeneration project include a similar-sized industrial area adjacent to Woodilee and a commercial development in the South Bank area of the Kirkintilloch town centre.
This will include office space, retail, restaurant and café units.
There are also proposals for a marina and arts centre on the Forth and Clyde Canal.
Funding for the initiative partly comes from the sale of the former Woodilee Hospital and council assets, including the old town hall.
References: EGi News 31/01/06
