Tag: Leith Links area

Controlled Parking& Low Traffic Neighbourhood in Leith Links

Parking Info

We were grateful to Gavin Brown and Gavin Graham of City of Edinburgh Council for coming along to the March ’23 Leith Links Community Council Meeting to talk about the forthcoming CPZ in our area, which is now scheduled to go fully live on 26th June.

The meeting was attended by a large number of local residents They answered our many questions very fully, and a transcript of those Q &As is available here.

They stressed that if anybody has questions about anything to do with parking controls in their street or area, expecially if urgent, they should in the first instance contact:

ParkingOperations.CustomerCare@edinburgh.gov.uk

as that email is constantly monitored and will achieve a quick reply, whereas emails to the personally may take longer to go through.

See also our earlier post witrh details about permits, at:

http://www.leithlinkscc.org.uk/controlled-parki…eith-north-leith/

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LTN Info

We were grateful to Councillor Scott Arthur and Miles Wilkinson of City of Edinburgh Council for coming to our April ’23 LLCC meeting and sharing information about the Low Traffic Neighbourhood, which has been being rolled out in stages throughout April and May (and June, to come). Again, that meeting was attended by many local residents, and many questions were asked and answered. The presentation that Miles gave that evening is too large a file to be handled easily here, but you can read the latest edition of the LTN Newsletter here.  (N.B for 35 read 34 bus).

Any queries about the LTN should be directed in the first instance to: leithconnections@edinburgh.gov.uk

 

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Controlled Parking Zone (Zone N8), Leith & North Leith

Everyone is scrabbling for information about the new parking controls coming in.

At our LLCC and LH&N CC meeting a few weeks back, Council Officers Gavin Brown and Gavin Graham kindly attended and provided the Community Council and local residents with a range of information about the impending Controlled Parking Zone (CPZ) in Leith is available via the links below*.

However, some of that information is already out of date. Here is the basic key information, updated as of 17 May 2023:

PERMITS

You can apply for a Residents Parking Permit from 5th June. You need to set up an ‘Account’ and a Password first, and your permit will be electronic, not ‘paper’. Start here:

https://edinburgh.nsl-apply.co.uk/

When you apply, set your start date for the permit as 26 June 2023, to get best value.

GO LIVE DATE

The CPZ will actually go ‘live’ on 26th June 2023. That means parking charges will be enforced in all marked bays, whether for Residents’ Permit Holders Only or Pay and Park .

(The double yellow lines are already live, the moment they are painted, so you can get a ticket if you patrk there.)

PRICES

The actual parking charges and the cost of permits has gone up since the presentation in March. You can find the correct current prices for residents permits here.

There are separate price schedules for business permits, visitors permits, etc. here https://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/parking-permits

You can find the ‘Pay to Park’ prices here, although unfortunately the website has not been updated to include Leith (Zone 8), but we’re guessing it counts as a ‘Peripheral’ zone, therefore might be £3.40 per hour.

* For more background and some specific details, follow these links and have a read of the information provided at the March Question and Answer session:

  1. The presentation on the CPZ from Council officers.
  2. The questions that residents asked, and answers to each question,  from the Council officers.

 

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Parking for Visiting Carers – Urgent!

The Controlled Parking Zones (CPZ) coming to Leith will affect people who have carers regularly visiting them in their homes to provide essential care, who travel by car. This may be professional carers provided by the Council or by a private company, or it might be informal care provided by friends and/or family.

If this applies to you or to someone you know or care for, who is elderly, ill or disabled,  PLEASE do the following asap!

  1. Fill in the survey at https://consultationhub.edinburgh.gov.uk/sfc/carersparking/
    This has just been extended, but still only runs until 16 April (NB holiday time!) so do not put it off!
  2. Let the Community Council know, via email: contact@leithlinkscc.org.uk

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Leith Links Community Council meeting, Monday 27th March, 6:30pm, online (Teams).

The special guest speakers at our meeting tomorrow asked for questions to be sent to them in advance, so we have done that. We are listing those questions here below, so that members of the community can also see them in advance.

Gavin Brown and Gavin Graham of the City of Edinburgh Council have agreed to share information and answer questions about the Controlled Parking Zones (CPZ) that are about to be introduced.

Members of the public from Leith and North Leith are welcome to attend  Please email contact@leithlinkscc.org.uk and you will be sent a link for the meeting. (Please do this BEFORE 12.00 on 27th March. Last minute requests are difficult to fulfil.)

YOUR QUESTIONS

CPZ Questions from Leith Links & Leith Harbour & Newhaven Community Council residents

General

How do we know if we need a permit or not? How / where/ when do we apply?

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When will permits come into action and how much will they be?

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Can we get permits for visitors and guests?

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Will parking permits be needed at night time and weekends, or are they only for 8-5 or 9-6 (or whatever) hours?

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I have carers coming to the house three times a day. Two carers on the morning and evening slot. How are they supposed to park? They already are very low paid and can barely afford to work, so I don’t think they can afford to pay big parking fees (and I can’t afford to pay them for them) and also, they are not paid for their travel time, so if they have to spend ages searching for a parking place it will eat into the time they have to give me the care I need. I am very worried.

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Why can’t we have parking control only at times that will stop commuters parking all day (like they have at the Grange)? Why does it have to be so all encompassing?

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With reference to the above subject and the meeting on Monday 27th March  I would like to ask why CEC have made it so difficult to clearly determine what the full proposals are? With some information being provided on maps and other information provided elsewhere it’s virtually impossible to obtain an accurate understanding of the full plan.

What levels of revenue CEC expect to raise from the introduction of these new CPZ’s and what will this extra revenue be spent on?

What exactly are the proposals to deal with displaced parking should this become an issue? Merely the introduction of further CPZ’s, or are other potential solutions available?

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My family often come up from England to visit me, and stay a couple of days. Can I get a Visitor permit for them?

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I have an AirBNB in the area. How will my guests be able to park?

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When will the controls be implemented? I see yellow lines going in right now, but I don’t think they are ‘live’? How will people know when they start and how long they can continue to park there without fines, meanwhile?

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I am a business owner. I am interested to know what we are expected to do about our employees and customers’ parking, since most of Leith parking is for permit holders only. I have a few employees, one of which has to run off to pick up her children from school, she cannot get a bus as timing is unpredictable due to the north bridge closure/consistent changes of leith walk bus stops, and is not on a tram route, and has to park her car. She has expressed an idea that she might have to look for another job due to her not being able to park anywhere. How is it fair that I might lose an employee due to parking restrictions? This is only one of my employees. There must be hundreds of employees in the same situation, let alone customers who will stop coming to Leith to use our businesses. We have already had clients complain that they cannot park. We are not commuters. We are only trying to park our cars and run our businesses. Finally we are getting somewhere with the trams, we’ve survived 16 years of roadworks and mess and now we can’t even park to come to work.

More Specific

Elderly and disabled people who live in a PoLHA block at 133 Constitution Street are ‘marooned’ in their homes as there are no spaces for parking or loading / unloading bays near their door, for taxis and relatives to pick them up and drop off. (Not to mention ambulances etc.)  What can be done to help them?

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The Better Day supermarket on Salamander Place is a lifeline for the many residents who live around this area and don’t want to enter the congested areas of Duke Street/Leith Walk and Commercial Street etc. for shopping. It needs a loading bay outside and a few parking slots for shoppers (maybe restricted to 30 minutes and No Return within X hours.

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I’d like to know if the CPZ people have liaised with Lothian Buses? There are ongoing discussions about the route of the 34 bus and the location of permanent bus stops  (Constitution Street/ Links Place / Links Gardens /  Salamander Place), and I am concerned that road markings for the CPZ  will not be coordinated with the new plans for the bus stops.

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Police officers – Given the representations made to the consultation by a number of police officers about the impact on them, is there no way the Council can provide them with permits in conjunction with their employer?   A sort of essential worker with ‘anti social working hours’ permit?  Many start and finish work at times there is no or very limited public transport and may live quite a way from the Leith station where the Police vehicles are parked.   Was this issue even considered?

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Controlled parking is coming in on Tower Place,  against the wishes of the residents (who all have allotted parking spaces with their flats). There will now be no free parking in this area as double yellows all along this section of Ocean Drive due to trams.  Where are delivery vans going to park? They have already started parking on the pavements… sometimes blocking dropped kerbs  (and we have a few wheelchair users) and there are huge numbers of pedestrians using the road constantly due to the Victoria ship (plus many of them have cars parked in Tower Place). Could we at least have a couple of loading bays?

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I’d like to know if the council will repaint all lines /add new lines on Tower St. It’s devoid of ANY road markings. Also George Brown & sons park big vans in 2 disabled spaces on Tower St alongside the Malmaison – and this must stop.

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Parking bays being put in the entrances to the garage businesses on Manderston St and Gordon St, why? We will be fighting just to get parked at our own entrance! Bad enough when the double yellows got put in deterring customers parking up for quotes, advice etc! Some thoughts for local business wouldn’t go amiss.

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I have a permit for my own home address (Links Gardens), will I also be able to park near my work if I need to at times (Commercial Street)?

I don’t really understand the zones – both North Leith and Leith seem to be numbered N8 – are they covered by the same permit?   With a permit for Links Gardens, will I be able to park in the North Leith zone, eg, away along at Newhaven?

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I had a walk round the block this morning and counted 7 cars in permit holder parking areas. Obviously not in use yet but they all had school parking permit holder badges. St Mary’s school parking area is full so I assume these are teachers cars on the street. A question for Monday. Will these cars be allowed to use the permit parking spaces? Or is their permit just to use the full school car park?

Monitoring

I’d like to know what the arrangements are going to be for monitoring in the adjacent areas and how long the monitoring period will go on for.   Will there be a baseline established to monitor against?   If that is done during school holidays it will show a significantly lower number of cars parked in Duncan and Wellington Place and Links Place.

Having seen the painting for ‘Permit Holders only’ has just gone in on Links Gardens and assume the double (?) yellows will go in next I would expect to see immediate displacement effects to other areas.    In the absence of signage to show the controls do not apply as yet people will avoid risking a parking fine.

Can I therefore ask the CPZ speakers to tell us more about how they will actually monitor displacement from now- not just when the controls actually come in which looks to be likely in six months time?    For example are they setting up monitoring points/positions and doing parked vehicle counts at specific times/days of the week?    Do they have people living in certain streets to report in to them?   How will ‘monitoring’ actually work and when will it start?

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I live just outside the CPZ, and am anticipating a huge problem of displaced parking in my street and immediately surrounding streets. What ‘monitoring’ will be done exactly? When will it start? How will the level of displaced parking be measured and recorded?

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This next list, compiled by Councillor Chas Booth, are questions that he has received from community councils and others:

General questions or process questions

1)            Where can we see the map tiles of the final version of the restrictions, as they will be installed? Page 3 of the Strategic Review of Parking website shows maps, but it’s not clear if these are the final version, as they will be installed?

2)            Where can we see a detailed list of all the comments received during the consultation and the council’s response to each one? In many cases it looks like the council has ignored comments submitted during the consultation, and I’d like to know why? If it’s not possible to see each comment and response, is it possible to see common themes and the council’s response to these?

3)            When will the controls come into force?

4)            What communication with residents will there be before the controls come into force? Specifically, will I receive a letter giving me sufficient warning to allow me to get a permit?

5)            Zones N7 and N8 don’t appear to be listed on the council’s list of residents’ parking permit charges on the council website. Why not? When will they be listed? What will the price of a permit be in zones N7 and N8?

6)            Why are you introducing these changes? There is no problem with parking in my area.

7)            What consultation was carried out prior to this work starting? Where can I read the consultation reports?

8)            Some of the map tiles I have seen do not appear to have been updated with the results of the tram work. What coordination happened between the CPZ team and tram team? For example some sections immediately adjacent to the tram line only have restrictions until 5.30pm, whereas any parking at that location is likely to stop tram operations?

9)            Are these changes consistent with the proposed cycle lane along Lindsay Road, Commercial Street, Baltic Street etc as part of Leith Connections phase 3? Will the whole thing need to be ripped up if that project is approved? What coordination happened between the CPZ team and Leith connections team?

10)          What are the hours of operation of the new restrictions?

11)          If people act as paid or unpaid carers for somebody living in the new zone, how do they go about getting a permit? Is there a charge for carers to get a permit and if so what is it?

12)          What does the council intend to do to publicise the details of the new zone to residents and visitors, to ensure everyone is aware when it goes live?

13)          If changes are needed to the scheme as installed, for example because parking bays are causing an obstruction, or if unrestricted roads in the area suffer from uncontrolled parking, what is the process and timetable for remedying this? What review processes are in place to ensure these issues are picked up and acted upon?

Queries related to specific streets / locations:

  1. a)            Why is there pay-and-display parking at Salamander Street next to the junction with Salamander Place? This is the narrowest part of the street and likely to lead to problems. It should be double yellows.
  2. b)            There should be a loading bay outside the convenience store on Salamander Place, why is this not included?
  3. c)            What is the council doing to address parking pressure around the Links on match days and other days when events happen? Why are the restrictions not 7-days?
  4. d)            What are the proposals within the new Ropeworks development?
  5. e)            On Mill Lane there is a short section of residents parking shown. This is visitor parking for the former Leith Hospital, and should not be covered by restrictions.
  6. f)             Salamander Street on the south side appears to show parking restrictions, but this is where phase 3 of Leith connections intends to put the cycle lane?
  7. g)            What are the details on Portland Street? Will the end-on-parking be retained or not? If this is to be unrestricted, how will the council respond to parking problems as they arise?

 

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The 34 bus route, and bus stop location

The Community Council recently asked Lothian Buses what their plans are for the No. 34 bus.

In September 2022, the new bus route taking the 34 down Restalrig Road, through Links Gardens, and down Salamander Place before proceeding along to Ocean Terminal was introduced. For some reason, it was described as having been ‘re-routed’ or ‘diverted’ from Constitution Street due to the tramworks (although in fact there never was a 34 on Constitution Street, though there was at one time a 12, and of course the 16).

We were initially told that the 34 would eventually travel via Queen Charlotte Street and the north end of Constitution Street once the end of the tramworks made that possible. Now that the works are nearly over and the roadway is clear, we wondered if the route of the 34 would change?

A number of local residents have been asking about this. Some are keen to see a bus on Constitution Street again, while others have pointed out that the Salamander Place route actually delivers a much needed service to the large population of people who live in the new homes (e.g. the RopeWorks) around Salamander Place, with many more new residents set to move into the new flats being built on Salamander Street / Baltic Street.

Below is the reply we received from Lothian Buses:

34 Bus – Leith Links

Lothian service 34 continues to be diverted via Salamander Place.

Lothian have not been advised of a date when Constitution Street will be suitable for buses.  The route via Salamander Street has proven to be popular with customers and Lothian is in discussions with the Council’s public transport team regarding the possibility of permanent bus stops that would allow the service to operate via Salamander Street in the future.  Lothian do not have a timescale or any further detail on this at present.    

Lothian is committed to delivering for all of our customers – we will publicise any changes as soon as we are in a position to do so.

Gaynor Marshall
Communications Director

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The mention of bus stops raises a new and important question. If the current route is kept, and bus stops are to be made permanent, we want to be sure the stops are in the ‘right place’ to be most useful to bus users. If you have views on the best location for 34 bus stops around the Links, please let us know in the Comments below, or in an email to contact@leithlinkscc.org.uk

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Leith Local History Society, Tuesday, 21st February

After an absence of two years due to covid Leith Local History Society returns with a programme of talks over the next five months. Unfortunately numbers of people attending meetings have dropped as some members have moved on.

It would be great to see new faces so if you’re interested in finding about the history of the local area it would great to see you

The next meeting of the Leith Local History Society will be held on Tuesday, 21st February at 7.00pm in Leith Community Centre. The Talk will be by Ashleigh Thompson, City of Edinburgh Archivist who will tell us about new items added to the city collection

 

llhs_flyer_for_feb_2023

Best wishes

Jim Scanlon

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Leith Local History Society

After an absence of two years due to covid Leith Local History Society returns with a programme of talks over the next five months. Unfortunately numbers of people attending meetings have dropped as some members have moved on.

It would be great to see new faces so if you’re interested in finding about the history of the local area it would great to see you

The next meeting of the Leith Local History Society will be held on Tuesday 17 Jan. at 7.00pm in Leith Community Centre. The Talk will be – Old and New Leith a series of slides comparing how Leith has changed in the last 150 years.

LLHS MEETING

 

Best wishes

Jim Scanlon

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Communal Bin Hubs – have your say!

Communal Bin changes – tell the Council what you think by 18 December, via https://bit.ly/bin-hubs-survey

Do you use communal bins?  Have you noticed the changes the Council has made recently to your bins? The Council has been creating ‘bin hubs’ providing new bins, more bins, some different bins and – they say – more frequent collections. In some places they have moved the location of the bins. The overall aim is to improve the amount of waste which can be recycled, though it is also expected to improve street cleanliness if bins are emptied more regularly, and overflow less.

The Council now wants to know what you think about these changes, and whether your recycling habits have been affected. A short online survey has been set up by the charity Changeworks (posters about it have been placed on the inside stairwell doors of over 500 buildings across 96 streets in the Leith area). Residents can access the survey by scanning the QR code on the poster or typing the web address (https://bit.ly/bin-hubs-survey) into a browser. (Anybody can participate and input their views, you don’t necessarily have to have a poster.)

Please use this chance to have your say – the deadline has been extended to 18th December

Survey questions cover communications about the changes and whether you think things like street cleanliness have improved as a result of the new bin hubs. The survey does not ask directly if you are happy with the location of the new communal bin hubs, but there is a ‘comments’ box that you can use to say what you think about where the Council chose to locate the bin hub. Is it in a sensible place that you can access easily? Is it too close to windows or doorways? Are there problems with noise, or smells, or parking? The Council did not consult people prior to installing them in Leith. If you are unhappy with the location of your bin hub, write the details into that comments box AND don’t hesitate to contact one of your Councillors and the local Community Council and we will see how we can help.

Tell your Councillors

If you miss completing this survey, or find it inaccessible, you could also contact any of your local Councillors about this issue and/or let the Community Council know your views – we would all love to know what you think about the changes. Contact details:

Elected City Councillors:

Cllr Chas Booth – chas.booth@edinburgh.gov.uk

Cllr Katrina Faccenda – Cllr.Katrina.Faccenda@edinburgh.gov.uk

Cllr Adam McVey – adam.mcvey@edinburgh.gov.uk

Leith Links Community Council – contact@leithlinkscc.org.uk

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The Council say they will share the findings of the Survey with us in the New Year. The Community Council also monitors the state of communal bins and suggest improvements. Any additional information or views from local residents is really helpful for us, to be able to represent your views and experiences of this important local service, so please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

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O Christmas Tree O Christmas Tree

In last weeks Evening News, there was an article detailing where the council would be installing Christmas trees around the city this year. Leith wasn’t mentioned.

Last year because of ongoing tram works the council decided not to put one at the usual central Leith spot at the Kirkgate.  I know we all have enough on our minds with fuel and food costs going through the roof but a bit of Christmas cheer would be welcomed.

When I asked why another location couldn’t be found to place a tree, I was informed that the council had planted one in Taylor Gardens.

Exhibit 1

The council did eventually install a full size tree, which we welcomed, but could have been placed more centrally possibly at the Shore outside Malmaison or outside Bank of Scotland in the Kirkgate where many more tourists and Leithers pass during the day.

This year we had the same excuse about tram works for no tree at the Kirkgate but the council told us they had planted a tree beside Leith Library.

Exhibit 2

The council also intend to install a full size tree in Taylor Gardens but when I passed there yesterday there was one Christmas light from the bottom of Leith Walk stuck on a lamp post.

Why have I decided to moan? Because I feel the people of Leith deserve better and have stoically put up with continual disruption to their lives from ongoing tram and road works.

Having had a year to investigate alternative sites, it should have been simple for the council to find somewhere for a tree in Leith’s historic centre where more people pass including much welcomed visits from tourists.

Rightly or wrongly it does give the impression that the council really don’t care.

From an environmental point of view I applaud them for their tree planting but it could be 20 years before these trees are mature enough to be decorated.

After all Leith has been through over the last few years surely it’s not a lot to ask for a Christmas tree to be located in the heart of the community to be enjoyed by all.

Jim Scanlon MBE

Chair, Leith Links Community Council

 

 

 

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Remembering Lost Leithers

It’s always a shock when you hear about the death of a much loved Leither. 

This week has been particularly bad with the deaths of three people who contributed so much to our community.

The Queen of Leith, Mary Moriarty died last week and her funeral is on Tuesday 25th October. A service will be held in South Leith Parish Church at 12pm then on to Seafield Crematorium (limited spaces). You will then have the chance to raise a glass to Mary in The Dockers Club and share your memories with friends.

Mary was well known in Leith, not only as the owner of the famous Port of Leith pub where many a fun night was had, but also for her many years of hard work with Leith Festival helping it survive through good times and bad.

From my window I remember that on the day before the gala Mary would be out on the Links spraying and numbering the pitches for the gala day stalls.

She was always there at the crack of dawn on the Saturday and still there hours after the last stall had left with a litter picker and black bin bag making sure the park was cleaner than how she had found it.

I’m proud to say that I knew Mary for many years, and she will be sorely missed by many of us in the Leith community who will all have our fond memories of her. She could always make you smile even when you were feeling down.

I also lost another friend, Jim Tweedie recently who died over a week ago and his funeral is on Friday, 28 October, Warriston Crematorium at 2pm. 

Jim was a hard working member of the Leith Community and Chair of Leith Local History Society preserving our history and informing new residents about our rich past.

The society continue to meet on the third Tuesday in the month in the community centre and with a series of monthly talks.

Jim and I were also on the steering group to save Custom House for the people of Leith and with the help of local councillors, especially Councillor Gordon Munro the city council was persuaded to purchase the building using Common Good Funding. Work to establish a heritage display in the building is ongoing.

Finally, Davie Jeneil who ran a successful jewellers shop in Great Junction Street for over 30 years providing gifts for the many birthdays, weddings and celebrations of Leithers.

I also knew Davie as a great supporter of Leith Rules Golf Society. His family always put in a team for the Foulis Medal. A fun competition on the Links every year using hickory golf clubs which is open to local Leith businesses and community groups.

When Davie’s son in law turned up to play, I always thought we would be quicker just handing him the medal because he is such an excellent player.

Davie also supported the society by providing the quaichs and engravings for our other team events and again he will be sorely missed by all who knew him.

On behalf of Leith Links Community Council, I would like to extend our condolences and best wishes to the family and friends of all these great Leithers who we will all miss.

Jim Scanlon MBE

Chair 

Leith Links Community Council

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