An item of "Breaking News". Will appear on the Breaking News page and the front page.
Nearby residents appear broadly in favour of pre-planning application proposals for the former Martin & Frost site at 130 McDonald Rd (see 'Breaking news', 23.3.10).
They see Foremost Properties' plans for a mixed commercia/residential development as a great improvement on those of Unite in 2008–09 (Issues 155–7, 164, 168–9, 172), not least because they meet local expectations regarding sustainable/environmental issues and proposed materials.
Anyone who has lived as an adult in close proximity to a group of students will know only too well what tremendous fun it can be.
However, the City of Edinburgh Council (CEC) has reservations about the situation. It argues that purpose-built student accommodation has failed to keep pace with increased student numbers, resulting in more and more studious citizens seeking digs in centrally located, tenemental HMOs. This in turn results in more and more HMOs, less stable communities, rapid turnover of population, and properties left empty during the summer holidays.
Six candidates have so far stepped forward as candidates for the Edinburgh North and Leith constituency in the forthcoming General Election.
They are: Ian Gill (Scottish Conservatives), Kate Joester (Scottish Green Party), Mark Lazarowicz (Scottish Labour Party), Kevin Lang (Scottish Liberal-Democrats), Calum Cashley (Scottish Nationalist Party), and Willie Black (Scottish Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition).
Since Spurtle broke the news that Tesco has won planning permission for a supermarket on Picardy Place (Issue 180), we have not been idle.
We've commissioned a review of the situation by influential Broughton journalist, activist and blogger Fay Young. And we've gathered the opinions of local traders on Broughton Street and beyond.
We're establishing the position, its likely effects, and what can still be done.
The results will be published in print and online tomorrow (1 April).
Plain-clothed policemen have been hiding behind wheelie bins on McDonald Rd to catch speeding motorists, reported a local newspaper on 30 March.
The officers trained speed guns on vehicles outside Broughton Primary School before alerting colleagues further up the street who stopped and warned offenders.
Former Scotland rugby international Donnie Mcfadyen is now designing men's vintage clothing, and selling it through Threadbare on Broughton St.
He told Spurtle's Scott Richards how a recent chance encounter with organisers resulted in his creations being exhibited at February's prestigious St Andrew's University Charity Show along with top international brands such as Jaeger.
Seeing his clothes on the catwalk was an experience he describes as different to but no less emotional and inspirational than standing on the pitch at Murrayfield singing ‘Flower of Scotland’.
In line with amended national planning policy, the City of Edinburgh Council has completed an audit of open spaces across the capital.
It is now developing a strategy to protect and develop them in a coordinated way.
Go to 'Extras' for details.
Two potential sites for new allotments have been identified in Broughton.
The sites are shown in the Leith Neighbourhood Partnership Action Plan – part of the Council's new draft Open Spaces Strategy (see 'Extras', 26.3.10).
A 1.5 acre site at the southern end of Pilrig Park (adjacent to existing allotments) could accommodate 30 plots, while a further 45 would be possible on the 2.1 acre south-facing slope of St Mark's Park.
When architects Sir Frank Mears Associates presented pre-planning application proposals for land between Broughton Rd and Heriothill, local residents expressed several concerns (see Issue 181).
However, what also emerged at the March New Town and Broughton Community Council meeting was that these plans are the result of ‘years of consultation' with City Planning officials. The City’s priority has, apparently, been to avoid overcrowding in the narrow, steeply enclosed site.
Organisers of the 2010 Christian Aid Book Sale are appealing for contributions. They hope to receive books, of course, but also many other items of interest to the collector (for details, see below).
Gifted items should be delivered on weekdays, 9am–9pm from 26 April to 5 May. The event itself runs on 8 and from 10–14 May.