March 17, 2006
Upgrading Edinburgh Parks
According to the BBC this morning, Edinburgh City Council intend to bring the city’s parks “into the 21st Century”. I don’t really understand this. Are our trees out of date or something?
Councillor Ricky Henderson is quoted as saying that “A world-class city needs ‘world-class’ green space”. What exactly does he mean? What is a “world-class green space”?
The establishment of new parks in areas which don’t have them is obviously desirable, but the language of ‘upgrading’ the existing ones rather than ‘conserving/preserving’ raises suspicions. After all, the council has an appalling record when it comes to new architecture.
If they want to upgrade they should start with the performing arts facilities used by the Edinburgh Festival. A lot of money is needed there and until it is spent the Edinburgh Festival will continue to decline.
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/4814368.stm
Posted by Simon Holledge at 11:24 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
December 06, 2005
Edinburgh on Wikitravel
Edinburgh is the destination of the month on Wikitravel.
Posted by Simon Holledge at 09:27 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
August 27, 2005
Edinburgh drivers confused
Having had difficulties myself with the new traffic arrangements around Princes Street, I was interested (amused?) to see this report in the Scotsman.
The Skakagrall solution would be to make a one way circle route round Queen Street and Princes Street!
New Edinburgh road system ‘unenforceable’ - Scotsman - Police are refusing to fine drivers who flout new restrictions at key road junctions in Edinburgh city centre, saying they are unenforceable.
thescotsman.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1851252005
Posted by Simon Holledge at 11:12 PM | TrackBack
August 07, 2005
Tourist attraction attacked for 'Satanism'
Members of Edinburgh’s London Road Church are objecting to ‘Satanism’ at The Edinburgh Dungeon. They are asking for the tourist attraction’s entertainment licence to be revoked. The Dungeon’s displays are said to be offensive to Christians.
news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1741132005
Posted by Simon Holledge at 08:24 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
August 04, 2005
Council discover walking but not car-free zones
Edinburgh City Council officials have made the astonishing discovery that (in the words of the BBC) “walking is the most reliable form of transport over short distances and has a positive impact on health.”
Terrific! Now perhaps they could start considering why there are so few car-free zones in the city, and what they might do about it!
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/4743151.stm
Posted by Simon Holledge at 09:49 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
July 23, 2005
Borders rail link bill to proceed
The Holyrood Waverley Railway (Scotland) Bill Committee are supporting the bill aimed at reopening of the 35 mile Waverley line, from Edinburgh to Galashiels, which closed in 1969.
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/4706301.stm
www.waverleyrailwayproject.co.uk
www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/committees/waverlyRB/index.htm
Posted by Simon Holledge at 09:07 PM | TrackBack
May 20, 2005
Edinburgh skyscraper alert?
The council have appointed the English architectural company Colvin & Moggridge to look at a planning strategy for new buildings for the 21st century.
news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=545692005
Posted by Simon Holledge at 04:00 PM | TrackBack
May 17, 2005
Princes Street traffic
Now that cars are banned from using Princes Street (in both directions) from 7am until 8pm each day, people are complaining about dangerously speeding buses, according to a report by Angie Brown in the Scotsman.
While I’d personally like to see a one-way circle system using Princes Street and Queen Street together with extensive car-free zoning, I doubt if piecemeal alterations to Edinburgh’s traffic system can ever be successful. We need a comprehensive transport plan that takes into account commercial, environmental and heritage factors, transportation needs and traffic flows.
news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=535712005
Posted by Simon Holledge at 10:44 AM | TrackBack
April 17, 2005
Demolition of Edinburgh tower blocks
Edinburgh’s early 1960s Capelaw Court tower block in Oxgangs was demolished today. Two more blocks, Caerketton Court and Allermuir Court, will be knocked down later.
While I understand the reason is the state of the housing rather than the external ugliness of the building, this is still great news. I just hope that other blocks nearer the centre will suffer the same fate.
I used to assume that the old buildings of Edinburgh had been intentionally preserved, but a closer look at the city suggests that this was not the case. For example there seems to have been little resistance to the architectural vandalism perpetrated by Edinburgh University around Potterow, Crichton Street and George Square.
Any nominations for other buildings we might like to disappear? Mine is the Appleton Tower.
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/4452293.stm
www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/explore/demolition/index.asp
UPDATE 19 April 05
Here is the Appleton Tower.
Appleton Tower from the Crichton Road car park / Photo S Holledge
Appleton Tower showing the deterioration of the fabric of the building at the top / Photo S Holledge
And here is the building Gary Smith (Big Stick Small Carrot) is nominating for demolition: St Nicholas House, Aberdeen:
St Nicholas House, Aberdeen / Photo G Smith
Posted by Simon Holledge at 04:46 PM | Comments (8) | TrackBack
February 23, 2005
'No' to congestion charge
As expected, Edinburgh voted against traffic congestion charges - by a margin of three to one.
Whether the scheme was well-planned or not, I believe the end result is bad for the city. In the words of Duncan MacLaren, of the Friends of the Earth, “No one should be happy with this result - it is not a victory for anyone. Dealing with traffic growth needs political leadership, not opportunism.”
It’s difficult not to see the result in part as a verdict on the city’s Labour council and its work style - slow, unresponsive and tending towards arrogance.
Nevertheless Edinburgh does have a traffic problem - we experienced it only yesterday! Now nothing will be done about it until after the advent of the STV-elected council in 2007. A new traffic scheme is unlikely before the end of the decade.
What will happen to the proposed tram lines? Will any of them go ahead now?
news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=203642005
www.snp.org/index_hires.php?pageName=news/newsdetail.php?newsID=2833
Posted by Simon Holledge at 11:59 AM | TrackBack
February 14, 2005
No to congestion charge?
Edinburgh is likely to vote against the traffic congestion charge according to a poll for The Scotsman carried out by Scottish Opinion. The two-week postal vote ends on 21 February.
news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=169352005
Posted by Simon Holledge at 02:54 PM | TrackBack
December 21, 2004
Parliament House revamp costs
Dan McDougall in the Scotsman reports on the rising costs and delays to the redevelopment of Parliament House (including Scotland’s High Court and Court of Session). The Scottish Court Service has stopped the work for six months to review the project, now costed at GBP 133.6 million.
Without knowing anything about the background to the project - it may well be that the money is needed to preserve important and historic buildings that are part of our heritage - it is remarkable that huge sums of money are again being spent to ensure that a prominent section of the Edinburgh establishment have a comfortable working environment, while the need for new public facilities - hospitals, schools, prisons, arts centres etc. - is neglected.
thescotsman.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1444982004
Posted by Simon Holledge at 11:41 PM | TrackBack
December 16, 2004
Forth Railway Bridge memorial plan
Alastair jamieson has an article in the Scotsman about a plan to create a memorial to the 57 (or more) men who died in the building of the 1890 Forth Railway Bridge.
news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1433652004
Posted by Simon Holledge at 05:41 PM | TrackBack
December 09, 2004
Open Glasgow/Edinburgh Day?
Donald Anderson of the Edinburgh Council and Charlie Gordon of the Glasgow have apparently made a ‘pact’ to initiate greater cooperation between the two cities. Sharon Ward has an amusing piece in the Scotsman about this, accompanied by some good quotes.
There is nothing unique about twin city rivalry. Coming from Japan, it’s remarkable how closely the Edinburgh/Glasgow relationship mirrors that of Kyoto/Osaka - with Tokyo in the place of London.
All considered, 42 miles (68 kilometres) is no great distance. Perhaps the relationship is just determined by the cost and convenience of transport? The closer we are the better the synergy.
Perhaps we should have an annual Open Glasgow/Edinburgh Day: free transport and admissions for Edinburgh people visiting Glasgow, and Glasgow people visiting Edinburgh. In the noble cause of joke replenishment!
news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1408082004
Posted by Simon Holledge at 09:37 PM | TrackBack
November 11, 2004
Edinburgh Airport rail link
A proposed rail link from the capital to Edinburgh Airport is the subject of a new consultation. Estimated at 500 million pounds (compared to GBP 140 million for a similar link to Glasgow Airport) this project would involve constructing a tunnel to an underground station at the airport terminal.
The airport is also to be connected by tramlines. The Greens have suggested, perhaps not unreasonably, that the airport does not need both forms of transport, though the routes would (presumably) be different, and most airports in the world are served by more than one form of public transport.
If rail and tram are both environmentally clean, would this not be just a case of considering the likely costs alongside the numbers of travellers expected to use the airport?
thescotsman.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1292712004
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/3988805.stm
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/3968175.stm
Posted by Simon Holledge at 01:15 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
November 01, 2004
Tramspotting
Judging by the number of comments, the proposed new Edinburgh trams are the most popular topic on The Skakagrall.
A one day conference entitled ‘Tramspotting’ will be held at the Ster Century Cinema, Leith on 26 November, from 10 am to 3.30 pm.
It is organized by the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland. The meeting “will cover transport and environmental issues, sustainability, urban design, linkage, demographics … 4 architects will present design concepts for micro-development sites around selected tram stops.”
The bad news is that it costs GBP 70.50 to attend!
Posted by Simon Holledge at 10:46 AM | TrackBack
October 24, 2004
Multrees Walk, Baghdad, Edinburgh
Late afternoon in Multrees Walk and VSG Security are alert to an attempted terrorist reconnaissance. Photo © S Holledge
I wrote about the St James’s Centre on 12 October and wanted to add some photos of the building and its surroundings. So on Friday I took advantage of the good weather to walk over to St James’s to take some shots. (These are now up).
Dressed conventionally in an old (venerable?) tweed jacket, I’d just had my hair cut and looked, I thought, as respectable as any other citizen of Scotland’s capital. Or maybe not!
Leaving the centre I strolled into Multrees Walk, the ‘Edinburgh Nouveau’ shopping area behind Harvey Nichols. and started taking a couple of pictures. To my astonishment I was sharply apprehended by a security guard who told me (a) I was not allowed to take pictures, suggesting that I “might be on a reconnaissance”, (b) that Multrees Walk was private property not a public street, and (c) that he worked for VSG Security whose main office was in London, but he “couldn’t give me the address for security reasons”, and (d) VSG were employed by Jones Lang LaSalle.
Multrees Walk has spaces for 27 shops but only 8 are occupied: Louis Vuitton, Armani, a new branch of Valvona and Crolla and a few others. It’s a failed attempt to lure in the usual international luxury tourist goods companies. Could this be the reason why they don’t want photographs?
I checked the street for any notices suggesting that it was a private area. There were none. Later on the internet I found VSG were based in Northampton. Their address is of course readily available. The press representatives of Jones Lang LaSalle denied that their company were involved: it was LaSalle Investment Management.
Alastair Jamieson had an article with a picture of the Valvona and Crolla branch in the Scotsman on 16 October.
news.scotsman.com/features.cfm?id=1194172004
Posted by Simon Holledge at 07:46 PM | TrackBack
October 23, 2004
'Edinburgh Nouveau'
Edinburgh is acquiring a number of rather similar new buildings.
Harvey Nichols with Multrees Walk to the left. Photo © S Holledge
The Harvey Nichols department store in St Andrews’s Square is an example: stone with large windows, and panels of opaque green glass and grey-painted metal with shallow faux balconies. Multrees Walk, the unsuccessful shopping street around the side of Harvey Nichols is in the same style.
The buildings are dull and conservative, expensive looking and a bit vulgar, vaguely reminiscent of 1970s Chinese hotel architecture. I’ve been wondering about a name for the style: maybe ‘Edinburgh Nouveau’?
Work underway at 33 Princes Street: the usual suspects? Photo © S Holledge
The building now going up at 33-41 Princes Street (formerly C&A) is apparently derivative. Does it reflect the taste of the Edinburgh Council Planning Department? The design is by 3D Architects. Judging by illustrations on the internet the company were originally putting forward designs for a much more radical building, which would also have been less obtrusive.
33 Princes Street billboard. Photo © S Holledge
www.cda-group.co.uk/cdaflash.html
Posted by Simon Holledge at 11:01 PM | TrackBack
October 20, 2004
Edinburgh's third tram line
I am a great tram enthusiast. I’ve never used them in Britain but I lived on the Hong Kong Happy Valley line, and on the Tokyo Arakawa line.
I remember the Kyoto trams which which were laid out in a perfect grid enabling you to reach any corner of the city with only one interchange, an ideal way of getting around the dozens of temples and gardens in the old capital. Maybe even better than the Venetian vaporetto. Of course they replaced the trams with buses years ago!
Anyway (putting aside the nostalgia) the idea of having three new tram lines in Edinburgh is very exciting.
Alan McEwen reports that the route for tram number 3 has just been decided: Waverley Station to Newcraighall via Cameron Toll, the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, Niddrie and Craigmillar. It will cost 170 million pounds, which will probably come from the congestion charge.
news.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=607&id=1192512004
Posted by Simon Holledge at 12:04 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
October 19, 2004
Edinburgh congestion charge
Following the success of congestion charges in London, a public enquiry has come out in favour of a similar scheme for Edinburgh. The next stage will be a referendum to be held next year.
Labour and the Greens are backing the scheme, while the SNP and the Conservatives (pro motorist) are against it. Are we in the right camp on this?
Fergus Ewing suggests that the scheme would hurt small businesses, also that public transport would be inadequate in coping with extra passengers. Business may be fearful of change, but if the general urban environment improves, then surely many shops can expect more rather than less business? On the transport question, how would we fund better public transport without the charges?
Ewing writes: “If this does become a referendum, I would urge people to vote against it until Edinburgh Council can come up with a more appropriate system.”
What kind of system would be appropriate?
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/3752768.stm
news.scotsman.com/edinburgh.cfm?id=1214482004
www.snp.org/index_hires.php?pageName=news/newsdetail.php?newsID=2521
Posted by Simon Holledge at 11:09 AM | Comments (7) | TrackBack
October 12, 2004
St James's Centre, Edinburgh
South entrance of the St James’s Centre shopping mall Photo © S Holledge
Jim Gilchrist has an interesting article on Edinburgh’s ‘most unpopular building’, the St James’s Centre. (Did they forget about the Appleton Tower?)
It comes as a shock to learn that the St James’s Centre site was originally a two-level shopping street resembling Victoria Street. So much for conservation! I am pleased to see that the Cockburn Association are for demolition.
Empty office block at the back of the St James’s Centre from James Craig Walk Photo © S Holledge
One architect offering advice is Allan Murray who was responsible for the tinted-glass Omni cinema complex building opposite, but isn’t that almost as bad as the St James’s Centre itself?
The Omni Cinema Complex Photo © S Holledge
news.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=1182242004
Posted by Simon Holledge at 12:56 AM | Comments (3)
October 08, 2004
Doors Open Day and the Edinburgh Festival Theatre
Saturday (September 25) was Edinburgh ‘Doors Open Day’ (not ‘Open Doors Day’, though that sounds better to me). This was organized by the Cockburn Association on behalf of Historic Scotland. This year they opened 67 buildings throughout the city - far more than I could manage to see in one day, even on a Segway.
A selection of offices (architects, associations, trusts), museums, monuments, schools, churches, theatres and parts of the university were open. I attempted to go round all the theatres, but even this was impossible as the obligatory guided tours tended to coincide, and I missed both the Royal Lyceum and the King’s Theatre.
We were given an excellent tour around the Traverse. The 42-year-old organization uses its two small performing spaces efficiently, and with great flexibility. We then went next door for a tour of the Usher Hall. This is, or should be, the pride of Edinburgh - a large elegant concert hall with 2,199 seats and great acoustics. It is used for a wide range of programming, whether at optimal capacity is an open question, and one that our marketing manager guide did not answer.
Next was the Festival Theatre: Edinburgh’s problem. Endless press reports on the troubles of Scottish Opera never mention one basic thing: Scotland does not have a real opera house. The Festival Theatre was a classic bureaucratic fudge after years of planning, discussing, and campaigning for a real house (of the kind that has just been built in Cardiff).
Going around the theatre, I saw for the first time what had been done to to the building. A 1920s music and variety hall auditorium, up to and including its original 14 metre proscenium arch (originally of the Empire Theatre), has been restored. Modern facilities have been built around it, both in front (the glass facade seen from the street, with a large staircase, a bar and a cafe), and backstage (including an extended loading bay for moving sets etc.).
Unfortunately a modern front and a modern (if limited) back do not add up to a satisfactory venue when there is no proper auditorium. Like many small London theatres of the period, the Empire doubled up on seats by making the dress circle overhang and cover more than half of the stalls. This enlarged its capacity (the theatre now has 1915 seats), but killed the sound for more than half the seats.
Opera houses, whether classic (e.g. Bologna), or 19th-century (Palais Garnier or Covent Garden), or 20th-century (Glyndbourne), all have open areas that allow the music (and the voice) to reach the audience unimpaired. They don’t contain closed-off spaces which block or trap the sound.
The problem with having opera or ballet in the Festival Theatre is that you either have to buy the best seats, or be reconciled to hearing a muffled performance. Given relatively high ticket prices here, that is not a great choice.
Without an attractive house with good acoustics, Scottish Opera and ballet have difficulty in developing the kind of local support that is the norm in other European cities. Accordingly they give relatively few performances.
Moreover foreign companies do not want to visit a substandard venue which can’t handle their sets. This is one reason why the Edinburgh International Festival is not up to the standard of Salzburg, Aix-en-Provence, Glyndebourne etc. despite all the BBC hype about Edinburgh having the world’s best festival. The greatest fringe? Yes. The greatest arts festival? No way.
www.cockburnassociation.org.uk/
Posted by Simon Holledge at 12:50 AM
September 30, 2004
Edinburgh aspires to be UNESCO world city of literature
Edinburgh is being promoted as the first UNESCO World City of Literature, focusing on the Royal Mile. This is presumably to attract tourists rather than writers, but nevertheless seems a good, appropriate idea:
news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1141432004
Posted by Simon Holledge at 02:00 PM | Comments (2)
September 08, 2004
Congratulations Valvona and Crolla!
Valvona and Crolla, Edinburgh’s splendid food and wine shop, was founded on the 8th of September 1934 - 70 years ago today!
Posted by Simon Holledge at 02:17 PM | Comments (1)
September 02, 2004
(Partly) Car-free Royal Mile
Following on from yesterday’s piece about litter and pedestrianization (Edinburgh Dirty City): John Innes had written a report in the Scotsman explaining that the Royal Mile is going to be made car-free – but only the section between Parliament Square and Cockburn Street.
thescotsman.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1029412004
I was interested to read that this stretch of the Royal Mile actually does have traffic restrictions now, but “many car drivers … regularly flout the ban despite the threat of police action”. That includes me! I didn’t know it wasn’t allowed. Either my eyesight isn’t very good, or the signs are rather discreet!
Anyway this is one motorist who would like to see the whole of the Royal Mile car-free.
Posted by Simon Holledge at 11:43 PM
September 01, 2004
Edinburgh Dirty City
Outside our flat on a fairly average day Photo © S Holledge
One of the first things I noticed about Edinburgh, after I came here, was the litter. I live on a commercial / residential street. There are some well-known companies here, but none of their employees would ever actually go out and pick anything up. After Tokyo, this surprised me. The Japanese take responsibility for keeping clean the area immediately in front of their houses and businesses.
Alastair Jamieson had an interesting article about this in yesterday’s Scotsman. Edinburgh is compared with Copenhagen, one of Europe’s cleanest cities, which has an individual responsibility system like Tokyo. Edinburgh spends GBP 78 per head per year on street cleaning, whereas Copenhagen, comparable in size and population, spends GBP 17.
One thing that Jamieson didn’t mention: Edinburgh also has very few pedestrianized areas compared to other European cities. The Royal Mile is probably the only street of its kind in Europe that you can still drive up and down. Why is this?
thescotsman.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1019302004
Posted by Simon Holledge at 01:15 PM | Comments (2)