Gardener offers to root out cause of playpark squabble

A BIG-HEARTED gardener is offering his services free of charge to end a dispute which has seen a pristine playpark lying unused for more than a year.

Alastair Inglis, 48, has volunteered to manage the toddler's playground in Fountainbridge so local children can finally make use of the facility, which has been barricaded off since its completion in late 2009.

The experienced landscape gardener, who trades under the name Carricknowe Garden Services, said he was compelled to step in after reading in the Evening News about the protracted squabble.

On Tuesday, we told how the developers of the playpark -which had been built as part of a planning agreement to create a new Springside district boasting hundreds of flats, student housing and office space - had tried to persuade city council chiefs to manage the new park by transferring ownership. Unwilling to pay a fee, the council said it was its policy not to maintain property it does not own.

Mr Inglis said it was his "natural instinct" to help the needy where he could.

"I work for myself doing gardening services and always try to do my bit in the local area," he said. "After reading this story in the Evening News, my reaction was,'I could look after that'."

The Wester Hailes resident, who volunteers for the Re-Union social enterprise to improve the Union Canal, and also tends gardens in Broomhouse for free, said 30 years' experience in landscaping qualified him for the playpark maintenance role.

"In the past I have worked reinstating gardens for primary schools and their ongoing maintenance. I don't mind sparing an hour-and-a-half every other day to clear up dog fouling and check for shards of broken glass or, God forbid, syringe needles at the Springside playpark.

"Hopefully the council and the developers can get together and sort it out but, in the meantime, I would be happy to help free of charge.

Local councillor Andrew Burns praised the Good Samaritan and welcomed his offer.

"Given that the park is now at a stalemate, any offer to assist is to be welcomed and should be taken up if at all possible," he said.

A spokesperson for Springside, a consortium of companies including Royal Bank of Scotland, Grosvenor and AMA Homes, said: "We should thank Mr Inglis for his offer and would be delighted to talk to him.

"Obviously we want to make sure that the park will be supervised properly and, to this end, we will open the park once we have an increased activity and presence on the site."