Haggling over price stalls Lanark eyesore facelift

The former Alston’s garage site in Ladyacre Road has blighted its surroundings since the business there closed many years ago.

However, Lanark Community Development Trust came up with a scheme for the redevelopment of the site including the refurbishment and expansion of the storage building surviving on the site for use to build Lanimer lorries and other activities such as the construction of sets by stage groups.

It was also planned to build a new base there for the Clydesdale Healthy Valleys health-promotion team.

The remainder of the large site was to become a park-and-ride car-park for the nearby Lanark railway station.

South Lanarkshire Council, the Lanimer committee and Healthy Valleys joined the trust as partners in the project, and 10 months ago the scheme secured £1m from the Scottish Government’s regeneration capital grant fund after more than 800 Lanarkians signed a petition backing the plan.

However, the project has now stalled because the owner of the yard has refused to accept the district valuer’s estimate of the site’s true worth.

Despite that hitch, the council says it intends to soldier on with the project.

Its head of development, Pauline Elliott, said: “Despite the variations in opinion over the property value, the council remains in contact with the owner of the Alston’s Yard site and is continuing to work with a range of partners and interested local groups to progress a redevelopment project in this area of Lanark.

“At this time, the discussions with the parties involved are still ongoing.”