Category: Parks and Greenspaces

You are viewing all articles on our website relating to Parks and Greenspaces.

You may also be interested in viewing our Parks and Greenspaces Sub Committee page, which can be accessed by clicking here.

The toilets are very much OPEN!

Some people seem confused about the toilets on Leith Links. Here are the facts:

The toilets are opened from 10.00am to 20.00pm,  7 days per week. There is a council attendant looking after the toilets. This will be the situation throughout the summer.

The toilets are situated in a grey ‘Portakabin’ type building sitting right next door to the old bowling greens building, up at the Croft end of the Links, behind the tennis courts (shown in blue in the picture below). (The attendant may use the old bowling green building next door to store materials, or to sit in, if wet etc.)

                   

To access the toilets, you need to enter the old bowling green area by one of three gates:

  • one is open to the road on Links Place, more or less opposite Salamander Place
  • one leads off the entrance path to the Links at the bottom of Johns Place
  • one is a little gate further along that path that leads into the tennis courts area, behind the toilets and bowling green area. (This one is probably the nearest for people at the playpark or in the main body of the Links.)

(behind the blue tennis courts, top of this pic)

 

What is missing is signage. Because the toilets are behind the hedge, and facing ‘away’ from the Links, people may not spot them.

And / or people may see that the doors on both buildings are shut, and assume that the toilets are shut – but they aren’t!

We have asked the Council to put notices up to direct people to the toilets and to clarify opening times. If they don’t do that soon, we’ll put some up ourselves.

This sounds mad, but please use the toilets!  If nobody uses them, we’ll not be able to make a good case for needing toilets on the Links permanently.

 

 

New MasterPlan to improve Leith Links – your views? Urgent!

Leith Links is a great park and we all love it –  BUT it could certainly be EVEN BETTER!
In recent months, a new 10 year ‘concept MasterPlan’ for improving the Links has been developed, by a team led by the City of Edinburgh Council’s ‘Thriving Greenspaces Project’ and including representatives from a number of local organisations; ourselves i.e. Leith Links Community Council, Earth in Common / Links Activity Park group, Leith Councillors, some local residents, and consulting a wide range of ‘stakeholders’ such as Leith Athletic, Leith Franklin Cricket Club, Duncan Place, local Primary Schools etc.

The final draft has now been published and it is open to public consultation  RIGHT NOW (closing on 22 July 2022).

        
You can see the plans and give your views via the Council web site
If you don’t like using the Consultation Hub with its usual forced route through leading questions, then please feel free to write / email in with your thoughts and ideas to thrivinggreenspaces@edinburgh.gov.uk (and it’s a good idea to copy to your local Councillors),  and/ or use the comments facility below to record your thoughts and we will forward them to the project team.
Whichever route(s) you choose, please do it NOW, before the holidays, otherwise you might forget, and miss your chance!
The draft master plan is based on the conversations we have been leading and facilitating  over the past year, about what local people need and want. It lays out a vision of what could happen in the future, but there is no guarantee at this stage that it will actually happen; significant new funding is still to be found, and support from the local community is vital (if there are objections or new suggestions, there is plenty time for these to be taken into account, the details of the plan are NOT a ‘foregone conclusion’).
  
The plan includes lots of great ideas (yes, including permanent toilets!), such as nicer benches, better bins, improved lighting, wheelchair accessible picnic tables, cycle parking, wildflower meadow, use of surfaces for heritage mural, arboretum (started already), ping pong tables, a ‘trim trail’ and 3km fitness loop and a ‘natural play area’ at the east of the Links. Also a modern bandstand (or ‘outdoor performance space’), and many other upgrades.
         
To bring the old bowling greens area back into productive use, there is a proposal for an ‘Activity Park’ that could incorporate a bike pump track and a skatepark.
A skatepark came out as a very popular suggestion, in last year’s surveys that we carried out, and is likely to be heavily promoted by its supporters – but there are also issues to be explored about what impact it might have on near neighbours.
Please make sure YOUR voice is heard!
 
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Next meeting of Leith Links Community Council, Monday 27th June at 6:30pm, online

The next meeting of the Leith Links Community Council will be held on Monday 27th June at 6:30pm, online (Microsoft Teams)

Papers for the meeting will be issued soon.

Scottish Water and the operators of Seafield, Veolia, will be attending to give an update on the sewage plant and answer questions about recent odour issues.

As always, our meetings are open to interested members of the public. If you wish to attend, please email contact@leithlinkscc.org.uk and you will be sent an invitation / link for the meeting.

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LEITH CONSULTATIONS

Just like when you’re waiting on a 16 bus stuck in a traffic jam three arrive at the same time.

The City Council have added three really important consultations for the future of Leith to the consultation hub on the city council webpage.

LEITH CONNECTIONS PHASE 3

Leith Connections: Phase 3 west – east proposals – City of Edinbu

Leith Connection Phase 3 has some lovely graphics including one of Salamander Street with a new cycle lane and narrowed road space for cars and trucks that I’m sorry to say do have to use our roads every day on one of the main arterial routes East to West through the city.

I also find it strange that the graphic doesn’t show the CPZ plan for the same route which had permit holder and pay and display parking on Salamander Street at the same view in the graphic so I do wonder IF these teams actually communicate with each other.

The Leith Connection Phase 3 consultation is open until 17 July so please, please make your thoughts known.

 

ETRO Go Home?

The next consultation is on ETRO which we may remember in a previous life was known as Spaces for People. Love it or loathe it,  the road coning and closures project introduced to make streets safer for cycling, walking and wheeling during the pandemic is now finally up for public consultation. This is your opportunity to comment on the future plans. Do you want them kept or ditched? Have your say now or you could be stuck with them permanently.

 

LEITH LINKS MASTERPLAN 

Finally, the Leith Links Master Plan is also open on the consultation hub for your positive or negative comments. Please use this opportunity to add your views on how you would like to see Leith Links developed for all residents in the future.

The Leith Links Masterplan Team had a stall at Leith Gala and many members of the public visited the tent to find out more and to share their views, so now it’s your turn to do the same.

You can see more about the plans here.

Leith Links Masterplan – City of Edinburgh Council – Citizen Space

You can also comment here, on the Hub, but you’ll only find a very limited set of leading questions. If you have more to say on any specific point, you should email directly to Miles.Wilkinson@edinburgh.gov.uk

The deadline for this consultation is 31 July. Please also be sure to copy your email also to our elected Councillors:

Chas.Booth@edinburgh.gov.uk

Cllr.Katrina.Faccenda@edinburgh.gov.uk

Adam.McVey@edinburgh.gov.uk

 

 

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Public Toilets on Leith Links

Hurrah! The temporary public toilet block for spring / summer on Leith Links has now been delivered and should be linked up for plumbing and power very shortly.

Public toilets are vital for everyone especially as the days get longer and warmer, and more people spend longer out of doors in the park. Public toilets also empower the community as a whole, because community events involving large numbers of people can be organised.

As last year, the toilet block will be manned by a Council attendant. We are very grateful to these guys for their work and we ask the community to treat them with respect. However, they cannot be expected  to do ‘everything’, especially if it involves putting themselves at risk. If serious anti social behaviour occurs in the park while they are present they will call the police.

 

Temporary toilets coming to Leith Links (Again)

You’ll recall that last year City of Edinburgh Council provided temporary toilet facilities on Leith Links – we wrote about it here and here.

Similar facilities will provided again this year, which is good news! No confirmed date for installation has been made know to us but we have been informed by a local Councillor that the timescale will be broadly in line with last years.

The long term future of toilet provision on Leith Links continue to be an aspiration shared by many people across our community, including this Community Council but as yet this is a matter which remains under robust active dialogue.

 

 

 

Additional / improved street lighting for Leith Links?

We have learnt that City of Edinburgh Council took the decision last week to fund street lighting improvements in parks, with a budget of £150,000.

It is clear that citizens across Edinburgh will hoping for some of that funding to be spent in various parks, and it is highly likely the Council officers and Councillors will already have some intentions about which parks will benefit from the cash.

Therefore, if you feel that Leith Links requires additional or improved street lighting, it is important that you make that view known as soon as possible by emailing parks@edinburgh.gov.uk, and also emailing one of the Leith Ward Councillors;

When emailing them it is important that you are specific about your request (for example, just saying the whole of Leith Links is unlikely to receive support but if you identify a particular route through Leith Links that requires lighting for example that may be better received.  You should also say why you feel the additional  or improved lighting is needed perhaps share your feelings when walking through the route currently).

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Leith Links Community Council next meeting Monday 28th February 6:30 online

The next meeting of the Leith Links Community Council will be held on Monday 28th, February at 6:30pm, online (Microsoft Teams)

The Agenda for the next meeting and minutes of January’s meeting will be issued shortly

As always, our meetings are open to interested members of the public. If you wish to attend, please email contact@leithlinkscc.org.uk and you will be sent an invitation / link for the meeting.

Thank you for your support

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Consultation Report about Leith Links former Bowling Greens

Report on a consultation with the local community on possible future development at the former bowling greens area (and building) on Leith Links Spring / Summer 2021

Between May and September 2021 Leith Links Community Council led a consultation exercise with the local community about possible future development of the currently derelict ‘Former Bowling Greens area’ on Leith Links. We are now publishing in full the results and views that emerged, and this report has also been forwarded to City of Edinburgh Council. This consultation took place in three parts:

  1.    The Community Council held a series of 3 public meeting, online, that were well attended, by around 30-40 people at each of three meetings. Discussions were Chaired and semi-structured but open to all, and free flowing.
  2.    The Community Council organised and hosted, with the help of volunteers from other local community groups, a Community Picnic, 17th July 2021. This was an in-person ‘live’ community event on site, attended by approximately 100 folk.
  3.    An Online Survey was hosted on the Leith Links Community Council website and disseminated also via social media (Facebook, Twitter). The survey was open for 2 weeks and attracted 199 responses.

The Report in full is very long, but well worth reading. You can download and read the whole report here. We present a summary of the report below:

Brief Summary

The community in Leith Links has been consulted, and has engaged in large numbers (250) and with, in many cases, lengthy responses. The views of the community are that:

  • The bowling greens area pavilion should not be demolished but should be refurbished at the Council’s expense and repurposed to include permanent public toilet facilities and a mix of other facilities (details to be determined) that will be at least partially open for use by the community, not ‘private’. Security lights, cameras and alarm system should be installed.
  • The outdoor area surrounding the building, currently delineated by the hedging, should be refurbished and repurposed so that it is attractive and thus will be well-used by a mix of people (all ages, no one particular age range), which should reduce the incidence of anti-social behaviour. A slight majority favour repurposing as an area primarily for outdoor activity / sport / fitness use (e.g. skatepark), although significant numbers also favoured ‘mixed use’ and a ‘quiet relaxing garden area’ – and many other possible uses, see Section 4 in the full Report.
  • This refurbishment is long overdue and should be at least started as soon as possible, rather than further delayed until the proposed Leith Links Master Plan can be completed. (It could be done in stages, as partners emerge, funding can be sourced etc.) In the immediate / short term, a cleanup, and installation of benches and litter bins is required.
  • The community must be properly consulted at all stages and properly represented as an equal partner throughout the process eg. via representation on Project Steering Group / Governance body, Master Planning team etc.. The community is also open to providing support in the form of volunteer input on agreed projects, if / as capacity permits.

The Community Council itself at this point does not have any particular stance or plan that it wishes to ‘back’ or promote, but rather sees itself primarily as a means by which information can be shared and community views collected, recorded and communicated to the Council. We trust there will be further two-way and ongoing communication with the Council.

Having said that, we should nonetheless make clear that the Community Council does have some views. We favour refurbishment of the building and the outdoor area, and we award very high priority to the installation of permanent public toilets. We do not oppose ideas for sports / activities, but would strongly argue to keep at least some of the area retained as green space, rather than being completely concreted over. Given the very wide ranging (and in some cases directly opposing) views from the community, it is clear that ‘you can’t please everybody’ and on that basis we might favour a solution that involves a degree of compromise or mixed use,  that might involve splitting the area into sub-areas, partnerships between different groups etc.

Download the whole report here

or just read on here….
» Read more

Funfair on Leith Links 16-21 September

Delayed since its usual June ”season’ alongside the Leith Festival, the Funfair is coming back to the Links for a short period, in its traditional location on the western edge of the park.

They will start setting up on Tuesday 14th September and will be open 16-21st September.

Following local stakeholder engagement (including with this Community Council), the following changes have been made to the conditions of the event:

  • a shorter run
  • earlier closure (8:30pm) for safety, because of darker nights at this time of year
  • an increased Reinstatement Bond, to ensure any damage done to the Links (eg by vehicles) can be fully repaired with no cost to Council / taxpayers.
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