Hope for Burgh's bid for millions

Rachel Lamb - Rachel Lamb • Published 9 Jun 2008 09:00 0 Comments

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Helensburgh is edging closer to securing a share in a multi-million pound funding windfall.

If the bid is successful, it will pave the way for a waterfront regeneration project which will make the town more appealing to residents and visitors, as well as giving traders a welcome boost and bring new investment to the area.

There is £10 million up for grabs, but Helensburgh is competing against Rothesay, Dunoon, Oban and Campbeltown for a share of the cash.

Outline business cases for each of the towns will go before the council on June 25 and a decision is expected before the end of the month.

Gary Mulvaney, Councillor for Helensburgh Central, says he is positive about the bid: 'This is probably one of the biggest decisions Helensburgh has had to face in the last 20 years.

'It is fundamental for us as a town to try and stem the flow in terms of what we are seeing in retail structure now and a share of the funding would pave the way for a brighter future.

He added: 'We are optimistic because we have a very strong case in terms of what we can achieve if we get the money. The other strength of our case is that it"s deliverable in a very short period of time.

'The good thing is that there is £10 million in the pot and hopefully that will be enough to pay for at least one if not two projects in Argyll and Bute.'

Helensburgh has been branded a "poor relation" after missing out on past funding in favour of other towns in Argyll and Bute but Councillor Mulvaney is confident the town will secure a sizable chunk of the cash.

The councillor continued: 'I think it will be very difficult to argue against Helensburgh getting the lion"s share of the money.

'You can"t go through an objective process and then say you don"t agree with what the independent experts have said. 'Ultimately it will depend on the strength of our outline business case but I actually think our bid is a very strong one.

'This is not a wish list, it has all been costed. We have got the Helensburgh Partnership which is a superb delivery vehicle which pulls the town together.

'We have a very joined up approach and that gives us a great advantage.

'We need to ensure we get the maximum number of points and end up in the number one position.'

This article appeared in Helensburgh Advertiser 05 Jun 08

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