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Sorry folks, failed to get report of the fourth discussion group at AGM out for last week (see Heather’s post 27th). This group discussed how we might progress the ideas that came out of the Pollokshields charrette or community planning event, subsequent walkabouts for the Nithsdale Rd area (which includes the phone box) and the stall we ran at Bungo in the Back Lanes. Since then very little has happened but recently we were informed by the Pollokshields Trust that it has been approved funding in principle to help the local community develop proposals further – good news.
While it was acknowledged that numerous good ideas for improving the area had been collected, the unanimous view was we should develop proposals to redesign the Nithsdale Rd deadend as a whole, with a view to greening it and changing the road layout. It was felt there was huge potential to improve the street from how it is at present to the benefit of the people who live there, local businesses and the wider local community. The big idea here was there should be a line of trees down the centre (could be in planters) with parking on either side of this central line around which cars could circulate. Coupled with this the pavement areas could be improved (eg removal of rubbish bins).
There was support for setting up a steering group to take this forward, with their first task being to consult and involve local residents and businesses in making the street a better place – with support hopefully from the Pollokshields Trust. While this could include some smaller projects – some “quick wins” (the phonebox?) would encourage people to get involved – central to this should developing proposals for street redesign.
And two new ideas were suggested, a city tree (see here) to reduce the pollution from Pollokshaws Rd and subterranean rubbish bins as happens in many parts of Europe.
If you are interested in getting involved contact treasurer@strathbungo.co.uk
Our hosting company will be updating the server where our website lives so the site may be unavailable over the next few hours (1 November).
At the Strathbungo Society AGM on Tuesday 24th October, as well as the usual annual reports and a fascinating insight into Bygone Bungo, we held discussions on a variety of subjects at different tables. We asked each table to provide the top 3 or 4 points from their discussions, so here they are:
The coming year
- Promote the Society as a support / platform for folks in the community who want to do things – from setting up a book club or lunch club to a community dining event etc; we’ve got contacts, seed-money (perhaps), social media and web presence to help folks realise their ideas.
- Let the wider community know when there are important, formal consultations on the go: the Society successfully lobbied the Boundary Commission for Scotland to get Strathbungo into the same UK parliamentary constituency as Pollokshields (as it is for Council and Scottish election); no one else in Strathbungo commented (or knew about it).
- Think about a community-based Christmas giving event: ideas included working with a local choir to sing carols and use it to seek donations to local food banks. Or (ditto) hiring Pollok Park’s Clydesdale horses to do a Christmas ”trot about” up and down the Squares and Gardens.
- Other ideas: more arts stuff at Bungo in the Lanes, even working with artists to create artworks; get a box junction at the entrance to Moray Place to enable freer access; encourage flower planting in the lanes …
The phone box
Aka the “Bungo Booth”?
- All agreed this would need a flexible design and organisation that could allow it to be used by many different local groups, organisations, business (and for us to be able to link in with them).
- Popular on the survey and in the group was an information panel on local history / Greek Thomson… Discussed possibly of this being on external solid side of booth as a permanent display allowing rest of booth to be used as a multi-purpose space.
- Potential uses: book exchange, bike station, pop up shops / events, art exhibition / installation, tool library, greenhouse, starting point for architecture / local history trails / running groups. Hire for use would be nominal amount to cover running costs.
Web presence
- Make better use of social media: need to be much more active e.g. use our own Facebook page more, post in the Strathbungo & Shawlands Community group, use Twitter and Instagram?
- Rethink website (aka The Bungo Blog): need to think about who uses it and why, keep the blog (not everyone is on Facebook), think about what information newcomers to the area need/want to know.
- Check out other community websites as examples: e.g. Pollokshields Heritage & others
Feel free to add your thoughts here, or to comment on our Facebook page. Thanks to everyone who came and took part!
Gather at junction of Moray Place and Nithsdale Road
Sunday 29 October
11.00 to 13.00 hrs
Excerpt from Boundaries Commission Review announcement today. The original proposal was for the SW/SE constituency boundary to go along the railway track and then to swing into into Newlands. It would have cut Pollokshields Ward into two. The new boundary is along Pollokshaws Rd and respects existing boundaries. We will discuss at next Strathbungo Society Committee meeting but the changes appear to have addressed our concerns.
“The Boundary Commission for Scotland published its Revised Proposals for UK Parliament constituencies today, Tuesday 17 October 2017, for an eight-week final public consultation period. The Review covers all of Scotland except Orkney and Shetland constituency and Na h-Eileanan an lar constituency which are fixed by legislation.
The final consultation period allows further comments to be made to the Commission concerning any of its Revised Proposals for constituencies.
Comments on the Revised Proposals can be made on our interactive consultation portal, www.bcs2018.org.uk, where you can view the boundaries and name of the constituencies proposed and compare them with the existing constituency boundaries and other boundaries. Comments can also be made by email to bcs@scottishboundaries.gov.uk, or in writing to the address on this letter. All comments should be submitted no later than 11 December 2017 which is the end of the statutory consultation period, after which the Commission will finalise its recommendations and submit these to the Secretary of State for Scotland in September 2018.
Further information regarding the review is available on our website:
www.bcomm-scotland.independent.gov.uk.”
www.bcomm-scotland.independent.gov.uk.”
The red phone box on Nithsdale Road is one of the few remaining in Glasgow and BT have now indicated that it is “surplus to requirements” being very little used. They have committed to repainting it and are offering it for community use.
Ideas for future use of the phone box have been discussed as part of the Pollokshields “Make your Mark” walkarounds and also by the Strathbungo Society committee. We’d like to discuss options for its use at our AGM next week, and we’re running a very short survey to see what people think about its use.
You’ll find the survey here. It closes at 5pm pn Wednesday 18th October, so don’t delay!
Come along to review the past year and look forward to what’s coming up. We’ll be hearing about Bygone Bungo and consulting attendees about a range of topics, including options for the red phone box on Nithsdale Road.
We’ll also be electing a new committee, and will be looking for volunteers to help us run the Society over the next year.
Pollokshields Heritage will again be offering three walking tours and two bus tours as their contribution to this year’s Doors Open Days Festival, as follows:-
On Saturday 16th September
Pollokshields Heritage Trail One: the Villas
Starting at 11am from Maxwell Park Station
Walk duration is two hours
Saturday 16th September
Pollokshields Heritage Trail Two: the Tenements
Starting at 2pm from Maxwell Park Station
Walk duration is two hours
Saturday 16th and Sunday 17th September
Pollokshields Bus Tour
(Registration from 1.45pm at Maxwell Park Station)
Tours start at 2pm from Maxwell Park Station
Tour duration is two hours
Sunday 17th September
Dumbreck & Hazelwood Heritage Walk
Starting at 11.30am from the café at House for An Art Lover
Duration of walk is 60-70 minutes
All the above appear in this year’s Glasgow Doors Open Days Festival brochure on pages 37 and 39, at paragraph numbers 9, 33, 34 and 35.
A new exhibition of the work of Strathbungo’s own Alexander ‘Greek’ Thomson – he designed and lived at 1 Moray Place – is currently on at The Lighthouse.
Organised by The Alexander Thomson Society, the GIA and the Mitchell Library, it focuses on Thomson’s drawings of some of his key projects and includes 17 of his rare original drawings.
The exhibition is part of the city-wide celebrations of the bicentenary of Thomson’s birth. It runs until 8 October 2017 and entrance is free.
For more information about The Alexander Thomson Society see – http://www.alexanderthomsonsociety.org.uk
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