Feature
Glasgow city centre information session
Engaging businesses is the key to success for improvement plans for the city T
raders and leisure businesses were given a summer update on a variety of pressing issues at a well-attended city centre information meeting at the
CCA in Sauchiehall Street. The session, organised by Glasgow Chamber of Commerce on behalf of the City Centre Retailers’ Association and Glasgow City Council, outlined the significant city centre investment already undertaken to ensure businesses can operate and thrive, specifically the Avenues Project being funded by City Deal. It also provided information on the
strategy, the support services available and how businesses can participate in projects aimed at alleviating begging and homelessness in the city. Anne Ledgerwood, Chief Executive
of St. Enoch Centre and a Glasgow Chamber of Commerce Director, welcomed the gathering, saying how passionate she and the Chamber are about the success of Glasgow as one of the great retail and leisure capitals of Europe, while recognising a great deal of work still needs to be done. Brian Fulton, Chairman of the Sauchiehall Street Business Improvement District (BID) and Jamie
Shields, Project Manager for City Centre Regeneration, spoke about the activities and progress of the City Centre Avenues Project, the most visible example of the City Deal in action.
Improving Sauchiehall Street The BID, which was Glasgow’s first, has been running since 2014, with the aim of creating a brighter, cleaner, safer and greener Sauchiehall Street, with over 60 businesses and organisations involved. It has been a key driver in the decision to choose Sauchiehall Street for the initial Avenues Project. The BID engagement also involved schools, local residents, the community council and Sustrans, the transport sustainability group. Jamie Shields reminded the audience that the Avenues Project, which involved an investment of £7 million in Sauchiehall Street, was about improving connectivity, safety, enhanced walkways and cycleways, space reallocation, improved lighting features and greenery. Sauchiehall Street was the pilot and would be developed to link with Great Western Road. He explained the key outcome of the
City Centre Strategy 2014-19 was the separation of the city centre into nine distinct areas for improvement.
The devastating fires at the Glasgow School of Art and the 02 ABC have also been a catalyst for better communications among the local community and businesses around Sauchiehall Street. The impact meant that there were
two sets of contractors on Sauchiehall Street with the Avenues contractors unable to get access to the site, so the programme had to be changed. This was a tense time that was resolved when the Council put in place an onsite presence to handle the issues. It was pointed out that everyone needed a clear understanding of what was going on and when, and that visible on-street communication is vital from the start. “What we have learned is that businesses need to be more engaged from the outset. To allow this to happen, they need to see plans and businesses need to know who to speak to,” said Brian Fulton. It was also agreed that the street’s businesses needed to communicate better with each other. There is now a WhatsApp group for all interested parties with help in tackling issues. For Jamie Shields, a key lesson
Plans for improved walkways and cycleways in the city of Glasgow
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www.glasgowchamberofcommerce.com
was a single point of contact with the development of a construction programme which minimised disruption. He said: “Stakeholders need to see the vision before they see construction.” Strong visual communication has been vital, including on-street guides presented by Sauchiehall BID in collaboration with Glasgow Chamber of Commerce and Glasgow City Council to let people know about Business As Usual. In terms of City Centre operations, Denise Hamilton of Glasgow City Council is the point of contact for the neighbourhood. If businesses have
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