Calton meeting tonight

I've been asked by Betty Cosgrove, Chair of the Calton Area Association to let people know that there's a meeting tonight in the Thenew Housing Association offices on Green Street about plans for the memorial gardens. It's from 6pm-8pm. I have a surgery tonight, but hope to make it along!

Happy Anniversary to Calton Parkhead Church!

I attended a special service at the Calton Parkhead Church on Sunday afternoon to celebrate it's 75th anniversary. It was lovely to hear a bit of the history of the Church - from the Minister who divorced his suffragette wife to the more recent fireworks at an ordination. I've since found more fascinating information here.

After the event, there was an opportunity to look through the archives - photos of smartly dressed BBs, mischievous school children, dedicated parishioners, weddings and baptisms. I would really have liked longer to pore over all those lives lived! Alexander has been quite poorly with a bad cold, so I couldn't stay long; it was weird to be there without him.

I also learned from the Headteacher at Dalmarnock Primary that, despite last week's weather, every member of her staff team had made it in to work, including a supply teacher who was only in one day. Another member of staff came in voluntarily to help 'just in case'. I don't know how the staff managed yesterday, but their efforts and dedication should certainly be commended.

Living Streets

I participated in a 'Living Streets' audit in the Calton area last week - it was interesting to hear all the views of a range of local residents about the problems they perceive in the streets where they live and the improvements they would like to see. From my point of view, this gives me a far better understanding of where resources and assistance should be targeted.

I walk about in my ward on a very regular basis - only yesterday walking with the pram from my home in Dennistoun to my surgery in Bridgeton library. I report potholes and other problems with the fabric of the area when I see them, and I hope that this is helpful in improving the area. The issues I see on my travels however might not be the same as those local people notice, and everyone sees the world in their own way.

Problems can be obvious, like the absence of footpaths and the blind corners in Millroad Drive, or really quite specific to particular groups. One example from the walk where I didn't realise there was a problem was a rut in the road next to St Mary's - elderly and infirm people crossing Abercromby Street to go to the Chapel had tripped on this. It had been reported to the Council but, because the Council staff didn't make that journey regularly themselves, they couldn't identify the rut and it hadn't been repaired. I've taken a photo, and will make sure LES staff know where it is!

While there isn't money to do everything residents would like right now, activities like this will help to form a wider plan which can be implemented as and when resources become available.

Calton Fun Day

The Calton Area Association put on a great fun day on Saturday - they got the sunshine, a lot of people came.

The photo is from the raffle drawn at the end of the afternoon - sadly, I didn't get a photo of the belly dancers, who were a star turn!

Betty Cosgrove and her team have really done themselves proud; there was a lovely feeling of community spirit and people told me they'd had a great day.

Shining more light on the Calton

It's taken a long, long time, but I finally recieved confirmation this morning from Land and Environmental Services that the crumbling street lights in the Calton will be being replaced.

This issue started for me with the election campaign in 2007, where local people identified the dim lighting in the area as a problem. People didn't feel safe walking about at night, as they couldn't see other people, or indeed the ground beneath them, clearly. Older people had tripped and fallen, and for my own part, I kept getting my heels stuck in the cobbled bits!

I managed to get the more modern street lights in the Millroad Drive and Chalmers Street areas upgraded with brighter bulbs, but improving the older lights in Stevenson Street, Green Street Millroad Street and Tobago Street has been more problematic.

During the storms at Christmas 2007-January 2008, a street light was brought down on Millroad Street. Luckily, it fell on to the road, so no-one got hurt and no property was damaged. Nevertheless, I asked officials in LES if it would be possible to replace the lights in the area as a result. They're all of a similar age and condition, so I reckoned it was a fair bet that if no action was taken, this could happen again. I got agreement for the works to be carried out, but due to various budget issues (and despite my chasing LES on the matter), nothing happened between then and now.

Out of the blue this morning, I recieved an email saying that works will start next Monday, 7th June, in Stevenson Street, Green Street, Millroad Street, Tobago Street, Tobago Place, Drake Street, and Arcadia Street. These works will result in new white light sources being deployed as outlined in the Council’s lighting strategy and the Lighting Network Renewal (LNR) project framework.

I just called one of the community activists who had been calling for this, and she's delighted. It's been a long time coming, but the new 'white lights' will definitely be an improvement in the Calton area.

Thrills and Spills at the Calton Fun Day

I attended the Calton Fun Day on Saturday, organised by the Calton Area Association. There was a great turnout of local people and agencies, and fun for everyone - plants, food, face painting, dancing, massages, and even a bucking bronco!

The day brought the community together for some fun, but also involved people in a Planning for Real exercise. This allowed people to put markers in a 3D map of the Calton area to show where there are issues and problems. Once people got the concept, it really seemed to take off, and coloured markers were getting planted all over! The issues will be gathered together, analysed, and I hope real change and improvements will follow.


Huge credit must go the the Committee of the Area Association, who put a massive amount of work into making the Fun Day happen. They pulled off something quite special.

Commonwealth Games

Today's Herald carries news of Glasgow's bid for the 2014 Commonwealth Games. I'm really excited about this, not least because significant parts of the games will be held in the area I hope to represent come May.

Looking around just now, there are huge gaps in the landscape, areas left vacant and decaying. Some of the land is contaminated by long-gone industries. In my view, the East End of Glasgow has been neglected by the Council - so many areas seem so uncared for.

I don't believe that the East End of Glasgow should have to rely on the Commonwealth Games to get investment, but I do believe it's a great opportunity to provide new facilities.

The plans show that Dalmarnock will be the location for the athletes village - which afterwards will provide much-needed new housing in the area. I hope that the East End in it's entirety is considered as part of the plans - it's easy to build a shiny new "village", but if the problems (poor health, vandalism, anti-social behaviour, crime and lack of decent housing) that many residents face are not dealt with, the area will continue to be left behind. I intend to fight to ensure that all residents benefit from the investment the Games will bring.

I still have a niggling worry that if Glasgow doesn't get the games, that the Scottish Executive will pull the plug on funding regeneration, especially after reading this part of the Bid website:

"The Scottish Executive and Glasgow City Council have agreed to underwrite the costs of staging the Games. This will be on the basis of an 80/20 split. It is expected that the majority of the 80% of costs to be covered by the Executive will be new money committed to the sports and major events budget."

With this kind of split, the Council might not be able to pick up the massive funding gap. So I'll keep my fingers crossed til the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) make their decision on the 9th November this year.