Anger as Port Glasgow named 'the most dismal town in Scotland'

INVERCLYDE’S Provost has slammed the decision to name Port Glasgow as the "most dismal town in Scotland".

The Carbuncle Awards for architecture, run by the Urban Realm journal, chose the town as the winner of its "Plook on the Plinth" award.

The awards, which have been widely criticised in the past for singling out towns which are struggling, have returned after an absence of 10 years.

The journal singled out the Gallagher Shopping Park and A8 dual carriageway which “dulls the senses while sucking life from the town centre”.

Urban Realm said the Gallagher Shopping Park 'sucked life away from the town centre'. (Image: George Munro) It also criticised the decision to demolish the town’s long-derelict Clune Park tenements.

Event organiser and Urban Realm editor John Glenday said: “Having paused to catch our breath, the Carbuncle Awards have emerged into a post-Covid world, where issues around housing, retail and public service provision are more acute than ever.

"Port Glasgow is a town of squandered potential. Look beyond the grey walls, rubble and boarded-up windows to long vistas and you will see the beauty of the place, still punctuated by the grandeur of the library.

"Unfortunately, the immediate environment fails to do justice to what could and should be a jewel in the Clyde's crown. Clune Park was solidly built and once home to a thriving community and with investment, it could have done so again.

"Issues around population decline and deprivation are real but are best dealt with by working with established assets, not sweeping buildings aside in the hope that the underlying problems will go away."

Coronation Park and Port Glasgow Library (Image: George Munro)

Inverclyde’s Provost, Port Glasgow resident and local business owner Drew McKenzie, said the award's 10-year absence "speaks for itself".

He said: “It’s ironic that Port Glasgow has been bestowed this ‘honour’ at a time of transformation and celebration for the town – and in the town’s 250th anniversary year, which saw record crowds gather to celebrate the past, present and future of the town.

“However, as Oscar Wilde famously said, ‘there is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about’, and this provides an opportunity to highlight how this so-called award couldn’t be further from the truth.

“Sadly this ‘study’ focuses on a few very specific areas but Port Glasgow is so much more. The fact that these ‘awards’ have been missing without notice for a decade speaks for itself.

(Image: George Munro)

“There aren’t many places that boast a town centre with award-winning businesses, a recently restored building from the 1700s, a successful retail park, a castle, the last commercial shipyard on the Lower Clyde, a famous sculpture, first-class transport links by road, rail, air and sea, a swimming pool, new housing, and wonderful outdoor spaces all surrounded by breath-taking views – and that’s just one area.

“To the east and west of the town centre are some of Inverclyde’s newest and most desirable places to live while the east is also home to a successful business park with ambitious plans for expansion, and Parklea which features a brand new community hub, horticultural centre, and café, a community sports stadium surrounded by several grass and all-weather pitches, stunning scenery, and plans for an exciting new ‘destination’ children’s play park.

“There’s also upper Port Glasgow with a strong local community surrounded by excellent community facilities, including a recently revamped community centre piloting a national childcare project, a golf course, brand new or extensively refurbished schools, and a variety of modern playparks, and outdoor spaces.

Provost Drew McKenzie accused Urban Realm of 'not doing their homework'. (Image: Contributed) “Port Glasgow is of course, like most areas, not without its challenges but we’re working closely with the local community and other partners to continually look at how we can make Port Glasgow an even better place to live, work, visit and do business.

“Clune Park was largely a privately-owned housing estate that had fallen into a dangerous condition due to years of neglect, anti-social behaviour, and deliberate fires.

Urban Realm criticised the decision to demolish Clune Park. (Image: George Munro) “The demolition works are enforced and are being carried out in the interests of safety because dangerous buildings notices were served on residential properties, as well as the former church and school, due to their perilous conditions in line with the council’s statutory responsibilities.

“It’s extremely difficult to save let alone repurpose roof and high-level wall structures that are at risk of imminent collapse.

“Separate to this, it remains the council’s ambition to regenerate the area and we have been actively acquiring properties from private owners over a number of years and we now own a substantial proportion of the estate.

Phase one of Clune Park's demolition was completed earlier this summer. (Image: George Munro) “There is a masterplan for Clune Park and, subject to availability of funding and necessary permissions, what we have is an exciting opportunity to create new housing and make it a desirable place to live once again.

“We continue to showcase sites in and around Port Glasgow to a range of developers and have generated interest in working to regenerate Clune Park with the development sector, through a recent housing summit.

“It’s disappointing that the expert judges didn’t do their homework but we would be delighted to welcome them to Port Glasgow to see for themselves the many wonderful things the town has to offer.”