Public get their say on 'last chance' plans for controversial new Aberdeen square

Published on Monday 11 January 2010 21:33

A CONTROVERSIAL plan backed by one of Scotland's richest men to build a new public square in the centre of Aberdeen is the "last chance" to create a heart for the city, business leaders said yesterday.

Sir Ian Wood wants to build a 140 million street-level square on the site of the city's historic Union Terrace Gardens.

Sir Ian, who is head of the Aberdeen-based global energy company, the Wood Group, has pledged 50 million to create a new "beating heart" in the centre of the Granite City.

But more than 4,000 people have signed a petition opposing the Civic Square development. And Aberdeen-based Peacock Visual Arts, who have secured planning approval to a build a new contemporary arts centre in Union Terrace Gardens, have also voiced their opposition.

The North-east's economic forum Aberdeen City and Shire Economic Future (Acsef) is planning to seek the views of people and groups throughout both Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire over the next eight weeks about the "transformational" project.

Tom Smith, the chairman of Acsef, said: "The city square project is, I think, Aberdeen's last but probably best chance to get the plaza that it deserves.

"It is the biggest proposed change in the city since the creation of Union Street, which helped establish Aberdeen as a major city in our nation. And I think it would be ludicrous – crazy – for us to allow this opportunity to slip through our fingers. We will never have a chance like this again."

He said a major arts centre formed part of the proposals to create a five-acre civic square above Union Terrace Gardens and a dual-carriageway and railway line in the Denburn valley.

And he said that the views of the public were now being sought in the "largest and most comprehensive public consultation ever undertaken" in Aberdeen.

Yesterday, as plans for the consultation were being unveiled at a press conference at a city centre hotel, protestors unveiled three-metre high banners proclaiming "Save Me" on the snow covered gardens.

Katie Guthrie, the co-founder of the protest campaign, said: "We wanted to make a bold statement to really hit home the huge cost of following the City Square scheme which is not only a massive drain on the public purse but the loss of Aberdeen's historic and unique city-centre gardens.

"At the core of Sir Ian's plans is the complete destruction of the gardens as they exist currently."

Elly Rothnie, a spokeswoman for Peacock, said: "It is a huge disappointment for the people of Aberdeen that they will not be consulted on the full range of options for the Union Terrace Gardens site during this massive public consultation programme."

Sir Ian said: "I understand the arts community have their heart set on a particular building built in a particular way … Obviously it's been extremely difficult to get them to divert their attention to the wider possibility.

"But a contemporary arts centre, built as part of what is a transformational development in the centre of Aberdeen, will cost less.

"They will get exactly what they want: lower costs, better prospect for viability.

"But more importantly, all the citizens of Aberdeen, not just the arts community, will get a whole range of new amenities," he added.

Big-hearted tycoon pumps 50m into good causes in UK and Africa

SIR Ian Wood is already one of Scotland's leading philanthropists.

Two years ago, he announced the establishment of the Wood Family Trust, aimed at investing 50 million in economic, community and enterprise activities in sub-Saharan Africa and Britain over a ten-year period. The trust is focused on developing and supporting individuals to become independent, contributing and caring members of society.

Some 75 per cent of the funding is devoted to making markets work for the poor in sub-Saharan Africa, while the remaining 25 per cent is equally divided between supporting volunteering overseas and "global citizenship" initiatives and schemes to develop young people in Scotland.

Last October, Sir Ian also announced 400,000 in funding for a pioneering exchange programme involving young people in Scotland and Africa.

The funding is being used to develop an exchange programme for volunteers, aged between 18 and 25, in both Aberdeen and Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, and is being run through Global Xchange, a cross-cultural programme managed in partnership by the British Council and VSO.

The trust is also investing 372,670 over three years to launch the Youth and Philanthropy Initiative in Scotland. This gives school pupils in small groups across an entire year the opportunity to engage in a 12-week programme analysing social service charities in their immediate community and performing basic due diligence on their finances and operational management.

Sir Ian has chaired the Wood Group since 1982 and was awarded a knighthood in the 1994 honours list.