Caltongate Cash Cows

Caltongate developer Manish Chande wheels his "Brave Moo" through Princes Street gardens at the launch of the Cow Parade Edinburgh in 2006.

The following article appears in the Winter edition of Edinburgh`s Southsider, out today.

In the autumn issue of The Southsider we told you that Edinburgh was to receive a visit from a UNESCO mission in November. The city is the most likely World Heritage Site in the UK to be placed on their danger list. This is due to the level of concern raised about proposed developments - Caltongate, Haymarket, St James Centre and the Waterfront and their impact on the Outstanding Universal Values of the World Heritage Site.

Save Our Old Town and others throughout the city concerned with her future believe that the main things the inspectors took away, was an understanding of the problems raised by developers drawing up master plans and development briefs for sites, and the enormous pride and understanding of the city held by her residents.

The inspectors will report back informally to Historic Scotland in February, so that they can check facts and get any responses or changes underway, and then the report will be published in time for the UNESCO summit in Seville, next summer.

Caltongate developers Mountgrange`s Brave Moo cow was placed opposite the Council`s City Chambers on The High Street part of The Royal Mile.....

Caltongate developers Mountgrange, told newspapers recently, that they thought UNESCO an “irrelevance” and that they were not interested in its view on their development.
As we have found they have not been interested in the community’s views or anyone else’s for that matter either, so why listen to an international organisation?

Now with an economy very different to the one, when the plans were first unveiled in 2005, perhaps those other views on the city and how she develops will now become relevant as they should always have been.

The days of get rich quick property developers are now over, and as TV property programmes are having to adapt and rethink their ethos so must the City of Edinburgh Council.

Perhaps presenter George Clarke from the channel 4 Home Show should be telling them
“Its time to stop seeing Edinburgh as a cash cow and wake up to the fact that – first and foremost – your city is your home”

Mountgrange`s Caltongate cow placed in Hunter Square on The Royal Mile. Showing the lovely development. All Caltongate cows proudly displayed their sponsors name.

Lets look forward to 2009, not only as the Year of Home Coming Scotland, which will see descendents of Scots visit from all over the world, but also the Year of Being Home and where being proud and involved in your town or city is seen as a positive thing and not scornfully pushed aside.

UNESCO Slams City on Caltongate

Watch Jim Lowrie In Action Here

By Brian Ferguson The Scotsman Today Full Article Here

from the article -
"UNESCO yesterday criticised Edinburgh council's handling of the Caltongate development and said the demolition of two listed buildings could have been avoided, The Scotsman can reveal.

Its European heritage chief, Dr Mechtild Rössler, condemned the council for allowing the London developer Mountgrange to draw up the initial blueprint for the huge Old Town site, by Waverley Station."

"Jim Lowrie, Edinburgh city council's planning leader, admitted the local authority could be left in a "tricky position" if the council's handling of Mountgrange was strongly criticised and asked for a response."

"However, Mountgrange has launched an attack on Unesco, the world heritage body, branding it an "irrelevance" and saying it is not interested in its views on the £300 million development."

The firm said it has no intention of postponing the start of work until after next summer's World Heritage summit, in Seville, discusses Edinburgh.

A spokesman Mark Cummings of Never Beaten PR said a "dangerous precedent" would be set if a major developer had to wait until Unesco had delivered its judgment, and insisted that Mountgrange had no intention of changing its scheme, even if key criticisms were made by Unesco."

Also today Scotsman Burning Issue

Should Unesco be more in touch with modern urban planning reality? (odd question??)

Yes

RON HEWITT Chief executive, Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce (remember Manish Chande, Caltongate Developer, is the chambers property portfolio Head!)

THE recent visit of the Unesco delegation was a welcome opportunity for the directors of the World Heritage Committee to assure themselves regarding the situation

on the ground. That Dr (Mechtild] Rössler, in summing up, saw no reason to report Edinburgh's World Heritage status being at risk is welcomed by the business community. The existing environment is a key reason why developers want to invest in our city. And if we want them to do so we must have attitudes that make investors welcome.We don't agree the city is in a polarised debate about the issue.

Whenever we meet with heritage groups we are able to have open conversations about a joint interest – preserving and developing one of the finest cities in Europe. Has this underlying commonality ruled the roost of the planning process? No! Should it? Yes! Do we need a better planning process to make applications run more smoothly? Yes! And it has arrived. It is called the Planning Act Scotland 2006 and it stipulates that community consultation should precede the hearing of applications in the council's planning committee.

It is interesting that Dr Rössler seemed unaware of these provisions. We explained the delays in bringing in regulations to implement the act are occasioned by a lengthy period of consultation – just what has been asked for all along. Dr Rössler told us Unesco has no interest in (or resources to deliver) vetting of planning applications in Edinburgh. Historic Scotland (legally) performs the function of overseeing our historic environment. We will continue to work with that organisation and other heritage bodies.

No

SALLY RICHARDSON spokeswoman, Save Our Old Town Campaign

WORLD Heritage status is awarded on consideration by the World Heritage Committee (a committee of member nations of Unesco) on the recommendation of the International Commission on Monuments and Sites. Nominations are put forward by national governments (in this case the UK government), often at the suggestion of a national institution (in this case, the City of Edinburgh Council). The World Heritage Centre is an admin body for the UN World Heritage Convention, to which the UK is a signatory.

Unesco was formed in a spirit of encouraging international understanding and peace, through co-operation in the realm of education, science and culture. World Heritage Sites are an important part of this, encouraging nations to understand the values that they share with others across the globe: what Edinburgh and, say, Peru's Machu Picchu have in common may not be obvious immediately, but then you begin to understand how another culture produced – or came to value – a site, and realise that how they value that place is not very different from us.

To say World Heritage Status is irrelevant to Edinburgh is to say that Edinburgh has no relevance to the rest of humanity and, if removed, that its outstanding universal value has been significantly reduced. At present, the site remains of huge international significance and interest – key to this is its juxtaposition of the organic medieval Old Town and the carefully planned and designed 18th and 19th century New Town. Those calling on World Heritage Status to be dropped, or just ignored, need to open their minds, and perhaps also their hearts, to everything that makes Edinburgh special."

Council Spin on UNESCO Visit

Good piece of reporting here STV Video Here 17th November 2008

Edinburgh councillors claim they have been given assurance that the city's world heritage status is safe, following a visit from Unesco officials last week. But campaigners fighting the capital's most controversial developments have dismissed the announcement as premature and potentially dangerous. Unesco officials are alleged to have referred to Edinburgh during their three day visit last week as a city with heritage at its heart. Councillors are now content that the capital's World Heritage status is secure, and that all its contentious developments - other than a Haymarket Hotel

Royal Mile in Edinburgh- have been given the cautious thumbs up. But there are many who feel that Edinburgh Council is both missing the point and jumping the gun. The Unesco report on the city will not actually be published until early next year, and only then can we be certain about its contents. At any rate, Edinburgh's World Heritage status largely recognises bricks and mortar more than living, breathing communities. Some of these communities are demanding an end to what they see as council spin. Change is afoot for Edinburgh's world famous cityscape. To the south, Caltongate and SoCo are

Controversy over Caltongate planset to alter the face of the Old Town. To the north, the soaring towers of the Western Harbour project dominate the waterfront. To the west the brutalist St James Centre is set to be replaced by a development many feel could not be any worse. But it is not just the look of these buildings, it is their make-up, their inhabitants and their influence on their surroundings that need to be considered. No matter what Unesco decides, the council is still under immense pressure to approve the sort of heritage that future generations will want to inherit.
BBC Coverage

S.O.S UNESCO!

It has been brought to the Republic`s attention that someone or some people have been out calling on UNESCO`s help by leaving messages on the boardings around the empty bus depot site.

It was found here

The UNESCO delegation leaves Edinburgh tomorrow.

Planning Convenor Jim Lowrie in The Scotsman today

Haymarket Horror Called In!

Now why not Caltongate????

and finally HAPPY 60th BIRTHDAY Charles, like us here in the Republic he gets stick for daring to speak up and question the sometimes egotistical architecture of present and recent times ....and the mindless race to make all cities the same.

UNESCO Visit

View from Regent Road with now demolished bus depot, and at risk Canongate Venture, with Canongate Tenements Morrocco Land in background

Below is a comment from one of the UNESCO delegation in an article in The Scotsman today

Dr Rössler, who is accompanied by Professor Manfred Wehdorn, of the International Council on Monuments, in Edinburgh this week, said: "We are well aware of the strength of the debate in Edinburgh. We have received hundreds of letters and the arguments have been very passionate.

See some of that passion here
Edinburgh Our Beautiful City On Youtube

UNESCO In Edinburgh

Catch up with todays national and local coverage -Radio Scotland coverage begins at 1 hour 55 mins

It was covered on BBC One`s Breakfast a live broadcast with Sally Richardson of Save Our Old Town campaign and Architect Neil Baxter

Then on the UK wide One O`clock News BBC TV UK News then on Reporting Scotland no link yet

Unesco reviews Edinburgh's status

Two Unesco inspectors are arriving in Edinburgh to consider the city's World Heritage status.
The UN's cultural body is considering withdrawing the title, which it awarded in 1995, after the council passed some controversial planning applications.
Unesco is concerned about major new builds, including the Caltongate in the old town and the redevelopment of the St James shopping centre.

The representatives will spend three days touring the developments.
Unesco advisor Professor Manfred Wehdorn arrived on Wednesday morning at Edinburgh Castle for his first meeting.

Dr Mechtild Rossler, Unesco head of Europe and North America, is due to arrive in the city later on Wednesday.

Neil Baxter, secretary of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS), told BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland programme that he was concerned with Unesco's potential power over Scotland's planning process.

City's story

He said: "The idea of Unesco coming to visit and perhaps issue edicts is very worrying in terms of the planning process and due governance of Scotland by Scottish people.
"The planning system comes from government through to the local authorities and the controls are there.
"We shouldn't be stymieing development. If we'd done that in the past we wouldn't have all the good stuff Unesco wants to protect."

Sally Richardson, of the Save Our Old Town Campaign, said when the city had applied for World Heritage status 13 years ago it had signed up to Unesco's criteria for protecting and enhancing.
"We welcome Unesco's visit - they're coming here to offer international experience," she said.
"We're not fighting against development; we're fighting for the right development.
"My children and the children of the Royal Mile Primary School will see buildings on their street demolished to make way for retail-led development that's not going to add to the story of their city."

Delegates are to meet at Seville's 2009 Unesco summit in the summer to discuss the findings.

Edinburgh City Council leader Jenny Dawe said: "I am extremely proud of Edinburgh's World Heritage status and our beautiful architecture, which attracts people to live,
visit, study and invest in Edinburgh.

"We are also a living city that is continuously evolving with all new developments scrutinised and receiving fair appraisal.
"I believe that heritage and development both contribute to the fantastic quality of life that Edinburgh offers."

The Old and New Towns of Edinburgh were awarded world heritage status because of the unique contrast and quality of architecture between the medieval Old Town and the Georgian New Town.

Story from BBC NEWS:http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/scotland/edinburgh_and_east/7723840.stm
Published: 2008/11/12 10:30:32 GMT© BBC MMVIII

UNESCO Mission

This excellent cartoon by Frank Boyle appeared in The Evening News on Thursday 28th August 2008, the day after Olympic Gold Medalist Chris Holmes received a homecoming welcome down The Royal Mile and councillors rubberstamped Caltongate once more.

Do check http://www.eh8.org.uk/ for latest on UNESCO Mission which begins tomorrow.

Back later today with more news.