Letters: Don't assume all residents oppose zoo land-swap bid

AS SOMEONE who isn't a 'campaigner' or a politician but just an ordinary resident of Corstorphine, I would like to express my support for the zoo and its expansion plans.

I feel privileged to have the zoo 'on my doorstep' and to be able to visit it and see the changes in the way the animals are housed and looked after.

It has been great, for instance, to see how the chimpanzees behave in their new home. Although I also enjoy walking on Corstorphine Hill and wouldn't like to see the whole thing disappear under concrete, I think there is room there to allow the zoo to expand a bit without encroaching too much on the wild areas.

There is no point in preserving our own wild areas without doing what we can towards conservation of the rest of the planet and its wildlife, to which the zoo contributes hugely.

This is just my personal opinion but I would like it to be clear that the organisations, etc, quoted in your article do not speak for all Corstorphine residents, and should not assume they do.

Sheila Perry, The Paddockholm, Corstorphine, Edinburgh

Tron Kirk must be put to good use

WHAT is to become of the Tron Kirk now that any plans our council might have had could be a bit slow like the trams now?

In the past, this old church was used as a successful information centre for many years and it was popular with tourists and locals alike.

But since it was closed down it looks like just another abandoned church or piece of our local history lying doing nothing.

Our council had plans for this, but since the recession hit us, this property is doing nothing while sitting right in the centre of our city.

The toilets have been reopened again due to necessity rather than council needs and again the Tron sits empty above them doing nothing when our council could be using it to the benefit of the people of our city.

What are our council's plans for all the grandiose ideas that they had for the future of our city centre?

Just now there are many council-owned properties doing nothing and lying empty when they should be showcasing our city.

The people of Edinburgh appear to have gained nothing from the good times and other council buildings they hoped to flog off.

Any buildings that they did flog off are in trouble or way behind in any renovations that they were going through.

Is it not time for our council to get its feet back on the ground again and have a look at what they have done, because a giant telly in Festival Square that nobody watches seems to be the only thing that we have gained.And given the way things are going with the new government, we all might end up huddled around watching it because the people in the banking industry, our council and government got it wrong and have made a mess of things.

Andrew Murphy, Royal Mile, Edinburgh

Take care when cutting services

I CURRENTLY work for a construction firm and we have been perched on a knife-edge for the last eighteen months. We voluntarily took a 5 per cent pay cut 18 months ago as we realised that the recession was going to be severe.

There are dozens if not hundreds of construction firms in Scotland in this position at the moment and the situation is critical with several decent companies having gone under already.

While I do believe large savings in public sector expenditure are possible without cutting frontline services, the local authorities and government bodies will not cut waste before services under the current political system.

For instance, Edinburgh City Council has cut its road repair budget by 4 million already this year while the roads are in an appalling mess after years of neglect and a very severe winter.

As for TIE, I think their handling of the trams project indicates savings that could be made immediately far less awarding themselves performance bonuses.

Name and address supplied