Glasgow embarks on major regeneration scheme

The Clyde Gateway project will see £2.6bn invested over the next twenty years, starting with a £248m public funding package and the rest expected to come from private investors.

The 800 hectare area includes 350 hectares of contaminated land, and stretches along the river Clyde from the East End of Glasgow out to South Lanarkshire.

The regeneration effort aims to tackle the “physical and economic decline” of the area, with plans for relocating Scotland’s national indoor sports arena from Edinburgh to a brownfield site in Glasgow, as well as 10,000 new homes and 400,000 square metres of business and commercial development expected to provide 21,000 jobs by 2026. A new four-lane dual carriageway will cut across the site.

In comparison, the Government hopes the Thames Gateway regeneration project to deliver 180,000 new jobs and 120,000 new homes by 2016.

Speaking at the Clyde Gateway launch, communities Minister Malcolm Chisholm said: “This is a momentous day for the communities on both sides of the Clyde.

“A huge amount of energy and resources are now committed by the Executive, Communities Scotland and all our partners to make the regeneration of the Gateway a great success story that all Scotland can be proud of.”

Eddie McAvoy, leader of South Lanarkshire Council, one of the partners in the project, said: “Derelict and contaminated land, which has in the past been viewed as a blight on the Clyde Gateway area, is in reality an untapped resource and this new partnership gives us the opportunity to start using that resource; investment and hard work can turn such areas into a valuable community facilities, desirable sites for housing or market leading business locations.

“In addition the Partnership will provide a vehicle for the continuing regeneration of the communities within the Gateway area with the support and involvement of those communities.”

Partners in the project included Glasgow and South Lanarkshire City Councils, as well as the Scottish Executive, Communities Scotland, and Scottish Enterprise. The expected completion date is 2026.

For more information on the Clyde Gateway regeneration see here.

Goska Romanowicz