Tag Archives: Community engagement

To market, to market, it’s much more fun

OUT in all weathers and always on hand to help, Vicky MacDonald does it all for the love of her brainchild social enterprise Edinburgh Markets. Stalls of all kinds set up their weekend wares on dinky covered tables and include crafts, speciality soaps, jewellery, snacks, fruit, vegetables, meat, clothing and cosmetics, to mention a few. Currently trading on Saturdays from 10am to 3pm for now, in August the stalls will be open on both Saturdays and Sundays from 11am until 6.45pm during a Festival Market. A Christmas market operates in December from the 1^st to the 23rd.

Set at the bottom of Leith Street, in front of St. Mary’s Cathedral, between Little King Street and Cathedral Lane, the Market attracts the attention of the huge number of people who pass by from up the Walk, Broughton and surrounding areas. There’s a lot of footfall and the market is becoming an established weekend attraction as people stop and browse, buy, snack and chat, before going on about their business uptown.

‘The traders give each other a lot of support and my goal of getting local people more involved in their area is starting to show results,’ says Vicky. ’I know that a lot of this goes on in Leith already and I want to bring some of that Leith flavour up here. I hope that Leithers will support our market and get involved here themselves. ’

An event organiser before branching out on her own with a First Port government funded grant last March, Vicky is able to guide and support new traders, some of whom include college graduates wanting to start their own businesses or others who have been made redundant. “We are interested in helping start-ups and business incubators,” says Vicky,. Her pitches also attract more experienced traders who bring quality goods like meat from Ayreshire, fruit and vegetables from Macmerry and bread from the Borders. Edinburgh Markets is not just about profit, some of the return is ploughed into community work in Edinburgh. “We want to support organisations that work with young people and those who work with the homeless,” says Vicky.

You can find out more at www.edinburghmarkets.co.uk and contact Vicky about taking a stall yourself at hello@edinburghmarkets.co.uk There is also a Facebook page Edinburgh Markets.

A plan is in hand to start where the tram works stopped

LEITH’s fortunes could be in for a boost as new Chair of the Leith Business Association (LBA) Alex Wilson brings his skills and energy to the role.

Having done his homework, the association now has a redrafted constitution, newly introduced membership fees and a much wider sweep across Leith than the original Leith Walk membership. This association now means business and is ready to get to work.

“Our current and most pressing challenges are the residual problems of the tram works,” says Alex. “Business has suffered badly and the lack of investment in, and care for this area now requires imaginative thinking as we work to put things right. As we gain new members we will be able to tackle some of these problems and that’s what we intend to do.”

Having lived and worked as an interior designer in California for some years, local historian Alex kept in touch with news at home online. On his return to Edinburgh he quickly became involved again in local community life. He is also standing as an independent city council candidate in the May elections, .

Alex’s new appointment as Chair of LBA has fitted in well with a two-year campaign he set in motion to recover Leith’s ancient and historic flag from the Lord Lyon, the official heraldry office for Scotland. . “Thanks to the support of many interested people, our campaign has been successful,” he says proudly, “A ceremony will take place in Leith Library very soon in which the flag will be handed over to the charge of Leith Neighbourhood Partnership.

“Historically Leith has a strong community identity,” says Alex. “Regaining the flag will help Leith to regain that proud spirit and of course it will help to stimulate the success of local businesses. Leith has a great future ahead. ”

The next meeting of the LBA will beheld on Wednesday May 9th, starting at 5.45 at the Persevere Room Kirkgate Community Centre. If you would like to learn more about the work of the Leith Business Association, or to become a member, you can contact Alex at wilsonamc3@aol.com

Visions for The Walk

THE FUTURE of The Walk was the main focus of a Leith Neighbourhood Partnership public meeting held on 21^st March at Lorne Primary School.

Leith Central Community Council was well represented in a diverse audience that came to hear the ‘vision’ offered by City Design Leader Riccardo Marini. Praising the vibrancy of the area, he said that ’culture, creativity and design don’t get the attention they deserve’ in city planning. He also said that a place is a reflection of the culture of the people who live there and asked the audience to consider who and what the Walk is for. He said that the vision should come from the 40,000 who live near to the area and are part of the life that is lived there.

With Leith Walk regarded as one of the top three roads in Edinburgh, after Princes Street and the Royal Mile, Marini stressed that bypassing bureaucracy was essential to get the focus back on to people and the quality of life in the area. Ten thousand vehicle movements a day, and 7,000 pedestrians demonstrate just how popular this main arterial route has become.

Both Marini and Services for Communities manager Mike Penny urged the audience to give their views about what they wanted for the area. They suggested that a series of workshops should be held as soon as possible. But protesters in the audience said that consultations had already been done, what they wanted was some concrete results.

Pedestrianised areas, wider pavements, slower traffic speeds, more provision for cyclists and more services to support local community life were some of the recommendations. More benches where people could gather without having to spend money were also requested.

With further road works planned that will take six months to complete, the Walk is in for another period of austerity before the end of the year. But funds are set aside for a complete resurfacing of the road when all works are complete.

Mike Penny said: “There’s a reducing amount of money that we can spend one way or another. We need your help in identifying the priorities. There are different ways of looking at things. Can we do something with you?”. Riccardo Marini added: “Let’s get the passion back into the Walk.” One audience member said however that the complex issue of traffic management was really the key to all future plans. “If the volume of traffic is at the level you describe, what do we do with all these vehicle movements?” These are the questions to be considered at future workshops.