Council insists it still has big plans for Palacerigg

The Cumbernauld News has been dealing with a litany of chiefly online complaints about the parkland which saw its visitor centre close for good last month.

The park also lost its wild animal collection on cost grounds last year, but as we have reported, volunteers want to bring it back.

The council insists that it still has ambitious plans for innovations at the rural site which will involve park users.

A spokesperson said: “There is approval for the development of a phased programme of delivery for the park’s masterplan, with detailed plans being developed and reported back to the Environment and Transport Committee for approval.

“Our next step was to have been going back out to stakeholders and community groups to present the masterplan and discuss priorities for delivery. Unfortunately the lockdown hit us a few days later and since then the service has been busy delivering essential services and reshaping delivery as we come out of lockdown.

“We are keen to restart the process of talking to communities about the future and will be working with the communities team on how we can do this effectively in a more virtual way.

“We have also continued to work with community groups interested in taking a role in the park. Greater community and third sector involvement in the park was clearly supported in the master plan.

“Progress has been slower than hoped but we are now in a better position to start moving forward.”

Message from your editor

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news, I am asking you to please purchase a copy of our newspapers.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspapers.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world.

But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

Stay safe, and best wishes.

Janet