Press Release 22 June 09
Press Release 22.06.09
Save Our Old Town
Website:http://www.eh8.org.uk/
photos of SOOT Guerrilla Gardening Day Here
Save Our Old Town Guerrilla Gardener's stake a claim on land.
Edinburgh's SOOT carried out Guerrilla Gardening in a bid to highlight the continuing plight of public land, assets and facilities being left to rot in the Canongate.
The Guerrilla Gardeners ended their community gardening and clean up of the Canongate Venture by planting flowers, shrubs and a Rowan tree.
The Rowan Tree is renowned to offer protection to a building and the people around it and specifically protection from bad people. It is said that removing or even damaging a Rowan tree brings havoc and bad luck to those that remove it.
Spokesperson Sally Richardson said today, “Yesterday was about people of all ages in the community coming together to do something positive about the neglect of local public spaces. The children had great fun pulling out enormous weeds and we all deserved our summer solstice tea party with home made cakes. When the council look over from their HQ Waverley Court they too will enjoy the results of our labour.”
Fellow Guerrilla Gardener Jim Johnson, former director of the Old Town Renewal Trust added
“Its a disgrace our historic buildings in our capital , are left to decay, but by taking action today we hope that it will help in the fight to secure another 100 years of life for this former Victorian school for the community.”
Mr Johnson continued “It is scandalous that it along with the dozen or so council homes on the Canongate, it too is lying empty because of a fly by night property speculator”
This week Unesco meet for their world heritage summit in Seville , where the report on their visit to the capital will be discussed, which calls for the retention of two listed buildings scheduled for demolition as well as calling for the whole “Caltongate” scheme to be scrapped.
The Canongate Venture is one of the two buildings that Unesco are demanding be saved from the wrecking ball.
Although the proposed £300 million scheme with a hotel, offices and 200 homes has secured approval from the council and from ministers, it is now on hold after developer Mountgrange went into administration in March. The council said it will await the outcome of the Seville meeting.
Sally Richardson finished by saying “We hope that the council will take this golden opportunity to look at the site afresh and a community led scheme will replace the white elephant that was “Caltongate”. This will be among the topics at a meeting this Tuesday, to discuss the setting up of an Old Town Development Trust hosted by SOOT.”
-------------------------------------------------------ENDS-----------------------------------------------------
Notes to editors
1. SOOT (Save Our Old Town -Edinburgh) is a community based group, founded 2005 in response to the “Caltongate” plans by Mountgrange Developers http://www.eh8.org.uk/
-
World Heritage Committee Seville http://www.33whc.sevilla2009.es/en/
Guerrilla Gardening http://www.guerrillagardening.org/
4. Old Town Development Trust Meeting Details Augustine United Church , George IV Bridge
Tuesday 23rd June 2009 7.30pm – 9.30pm . Doors open 7pm
5. Jim Johnson (former director of The Old Town Renewal Trust) gives an illustrated talk on the development of housing in the Old Town in the 20th Century on Tuesday 23rd June 2pm (60mins) as part of The Old Town Festival at the Scottish Storytelling Centre. Scottish Storytelling Centre