Elgin residents are being offered an opportunity to express their views on how the city might be redesigned towards being a “vibrant place”.
The move comes on the back of an intensive Scottish Government funded programme of engaging communities in the regeneration of their towns, the Public Design Charrette.
Moray Council have joined with the Moray Economic Partnership (MEP) in promoting an exercise that will be led by a design consultancy team, with public planning and design workshops set to be held in March in St Giles Church.
The aim is that the local community join with designers and specialists to prepare a long-term vision for the Lossie Green and Cooper Park areas of Elgin. A similar exercise was conducted that ultimately led to the establishment of the Elgin City for the Future masterplan.
Chairman of the MEP, Councillor John Cowe, said that the ambition was to prepare a “vision for Elgin” as part of a realistic plan, adding: “It is aimed to involve residents actually sitting down with the experts and trying to plan a future for the city centre of Elgin, which I think is something that is badly needed.”
Councillor Cowe admitted that the exercise would “take a wee bit of time” and was being conducted at time when everyone is facing difficult financial circumstances – however, he added: “But this is going to make a huge difference and breathe new life into the centre of Elgin.”
The consultation is to being on March 2 and will run for four days.