East End Ward

Advance notice of the following sets of roadworks. Care should be taken especially at Forfar Road /Kingsway as major works are about to commence. Also please note that a section of Pitkerro Road will also be closed for a while in order to facilitate resurfacing.

Details of this are below;
FORFAR ROAD / KINGSWAY / CLAVERHOUSE
Further to our previous correspondence we are now in the position tostart the work on the trunk roads in Dundee. A reminder to you that wewill be converting the existing roundabouts at Kingsway/Forfar road andClaverhouse to light controlled junctions. This work will be carried outin phases and we will keep all of you up to date as the work progresses.

The first phase of the works which will commence on the 3rd September2007 will entail the construction of two cross over points on the verges above and below the existing roundabout at the junction of Claverhouse and Forfar Rd. We will also have to deal with some services issues atthe same time. At the moment we are anticipating two weeks of work,weather dependant, however we will strive to reduce this timescale if wecan.

Fountainbleau drive will remain closed.

The traffic management will be off peak only that is 9.30-15.30 and also19.30-05.30. we will only take up the evening off peak closure oncertain occasions. At these times the fast lane on both the North andSouth bound will be closed. The off peak closure means that the cones are lifted during high volumes of traffic. There will automated signs positioned on the Kingsway and Forfar road toupdate driver of any forthcoming changes.

For everyone's safety the speed limit will be reduced to 30mph, pleasebe patient and allow extra time for your journey.

Once this phase is completed the works will move to full contraflow while each side of the junction is totally reconstructed.

Pitkerro Road (Happyhillock Road to Longhaugh Road), Dundee – Carriageway Resurfacing (WORKS EXPECTED TO LAST 2 WEEKS)
In the interest of public safety, a road closure will be implemented and traffic will be diverted via Happyhillock Road, Drumgeith Road, Whitfield Drive, Fintry Terrace and reverse, for the duration of the works.
No on-street parking will be allowed on the section of carriageway being worked on. Restricted access will be maintained from the Happyhillock Road to service businesses within the closed section of road. However, we ask that vehicular traffic movements be kept to a minimum, where possible. Please note that pedestrian thoroughfare will be maintained throughout the works.

Some information regarding the Friends of Wighton from Sheena Wellington.

Autumn Workshops at the Wighton

The autumn season at the Wighton Heritage Centre, Central Library starts with a free Come’nTry day on Saturday 1st September, 11am – 3pm..

Members of the public will get a chance to try out whistle, fiddle and medieval harp under the expert guidance of Helen Forbes, Karen Hannah read and Simon Chadwick.

Regular classes start on Saturday 8th September, fees for each session being £4/£2.50 concessions.

For those interested in traditional song there is a regular Tuesday afternoon workshop, tutored by Maureen Jelks, from 2-3.30pm in the Wighton Heritage Centre.

The first of the Autumn Lunchtime Recitals with Graeme Stevenson on harpsichord takes place on Wednesday 5th September from 1.15 -1.45pm. Admission is free, donations in support of the programme are welcome.

Friends of Wighton

Had a good time at the Midlin Fun day on Saturday, Unforunately missed the parade, but the Pipe Band were amazing and Sheena Wellington did a star turn opening the fund day with a song about our very own DC Thomsons. Took some pictures from the even and hope they turn out. Have included some below.

It's election time again and I don't just mean the upcoming Lochee Council by-election but the Community Forums are looking for people interested in their communities to come forward to stand for election. This is an interesting position and it allows you to make a real difference to the local community.

You get the chance to discuss and decide on where money is spent. Projects have included bike racks for pupils at Craigie High School, community police officers - dedicated to the area and many other things too numerous to mention.

Details for our area are as follows;

Venue - Douglas Community & Library Centre, Balmoral Avenue, Dundee
Date Wednesday 19th September 2007
Time 5.30pm - 6.30pm
Contact Hazel Feilder (Community Regeneration Fund Worker) - Tel: 01382 432455

Dundee South East - Linlathen, Mid Craigie and Douglas,
Community Regeneration Forum Elections 2007.

In 2004 the Scottish Executive announced the establishment of a new £104 million Community Regeneration Fund, Dundee was allocated £5.775 million.
To distribute this money, five local forums were set up and 15 people were elected to sit on each for 12 months. The forums aim to meet local needs and address the aspirations of the Regeneration Outcome Agreements. They also draw on community plans when making decisions on expenditure.
Come along and make a difference to your community.

Further to my previous post, I have to admit a mistake! Doesn't happen often but when they do I admit to them. Mini recycling facilities have been installed at the Ballindean Shops however you could be forgiven for not noticing them!

They are installed at the taxi rank under the trees. I still think that the others located on Ballindean Road are in a poor position but will speak to the department regarding this.

Just received this from the Council's Planning and Transportation department,

Dundee City Council propose to make an Order under Section 14(1) of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 for the purpose of facilitating resurfacing works. The Order is expected to be in force for two weeks days from 10 September 2007. Its maximum duration in terms of the Act is eighteen months.
The effect of the Order is to prohibit temporarily all vehicular traffic in Pitkerro Road between Happyhillock Road and Longhaugh Road.
Access for residents will be maintained where possible.
An alternative route will be available via Happyhillock Road, Drumgeith Road, Whitfield Drive and Fintry Terrace.

Any comments fell free to get in touch. Our contact information is listed under our photos.

I have contacted the Director of Planning and Transportation in relation to the dangerous buildings notice served on ABB's factory on Kingsway east. ABB had until the 13th of August to make the building safe and were due to start demolition by the end of the year.

It saddens me to report that the management of this company have decided to appeal the notice therefore giving the building a stay of execution. Even though the company freely admits that in its current state thier is nothing that can be done with the building and it is unlikely that someone will be able to find a use for it.

This basically means that the company will go through a legal process to say (in their opinion) that the building is safe and does not need to be demolished.

I will obviously be taking a close interest in this and will update with more information when possible.

Glad to announce that Douglas has another excellent resource for residents to use. A mini recycling station has been installed on Ballindean Road which means that for certain recyclates, you will no longer have to make a trip to ASDA or Sainsburys. I fully welcome this sort of innovation and cannot wait to see more throughout the area.

I am thinking however of questioning the location of this unit as I believe that this would be beneficial if situated closer to the shops on Ballindean Road. These shops are used by a huge amount of people and would possibly make it even more valuable if situated there.

I have asked Christina to look into this with her remit as our groups spokesperson for all things recycling. Will update once a reply is received

Extremely glad to see the following on the recess sub committee agenda and even better that this was accepted by the committee

Extract from committee agenda below....
ABB, EAST KINGSWAY WORKS, DUNDEE (AN193-2007)
Concern has been expressed regarding ABB's derelict factory premises at East Kingsway Works.

Following discussions between the Depute Chief Executive (Support Services) and the Director ofPlanning and Transportation it has therefore been decided to proceed with a Dangerous BuildingsNotice under the Building (Scotland) Act 2003.

The Notice which is currently being served requires ABB (unless they successfully appeal to theSheriff) to secure the building against entry by 13th August and then demolish it by 28th December2007.
ends

I am hoping that ABB do not decide to appeal this notice and this blot on the landscape will be gone forever. I will be watching this item with interest over the upcoming months and as the 13th has passed will be asking the Planning and Transportation Director if they have been able to secure the building.


The Sub-Committee are asked to note the position and that the Planning and Transport Committeewill be kept advised of progress.

Finally had some good news reference the dreaded abandoned trolleys throughout the ward. With an apparent lack of interest from the store, I felt obliged to contact ASDA's head office to encourage a response.

Normally, the store will hire a van once a month to go and find abandoned trolleys but this allowed a full month for the area to be littered with them. They are now going to arrange this every fortnight. However in order to ensure that this is successful, the store really need to know where the abandoned trolleys are so that they can collect them. If you find any abandoned please let a member of staff in ASDA know so they can collect them.

Recess is over and i've not updated the blog in a while so I have a lot too report, but to save on overkill, will stick to traffic issues at present.

Glad to see at last nights committee that pot holes should hopefully be repaired properly in the near future. The "Rapid Rhino" scheme should allow these to be documented and repaired fully whilst the current situation only means temporary repairs are carried out. These temporary repairs generally only last a few weeks then get worse.

Currently looking into issues concerning access to Gotterstone. For those who live in the area, getting in and out can be a nightmare especially at peak time. So far the news is not good as a recent traffic survey indicates that waiting times at this junction are relatively low. Trying to argue that the amount of houses being built towards Ethiebeation will see a huge increase in traffic using the Arbroath Road and this will have a negative effect on the amenity of the residents. However as normal this is a trunk road which means that BEAR Scotland are involved in its routing and maintenance and working with them can take forever.

Issues in the Craigiebank area (Dean Avenue and surrounding). The roads in this area are extremely congested and very narrow. Have been asked by a constituent to investigate the possibility of a one-way system being put in place. My fear over this issue is that one way systems increase speed. Whilst making it easier to get around, speed increases are not something that i want to see.

Also received a request to look into the traffic problems on Ballindean Road. This is a major road in to the Douglas area and can be pretty congested with buses and private cars. Although it is a wide road, cars parked with vehicles trying to pass can make it a nightmare to negotiate especially with buses coming the other way.

Will report back when more info is available.