Business Plan
Executive Summary
This Business Plan outlines the strategy whereby we, a Community group, wish to create a Community Park in the Merchant City District of Glasgow.
We have identified an area of land at 69-97 Ingram Street (the Land / the Site), which we think is suitable for conversion to a Park, in the Merchant City of Glasgow. The size of the Site is 0.25 hectares (0.62 acres) and it is bordered by Candleriggs, Ingram Street and Albion Street, and the gable wall of the City Halls. The land is currently owned by Glasgow City Council (GCC) and leased to National Car Parks on a month to month basis who utilise it as a Car Park. On the land there are currently 20 mature trees and an internationally recognised Mural. By creating a park on the site, we want to develop a green space with the many benefits that accrue with regard to the health of the Community whilst preserving the existing trees and saving the Mural.
The Park will have a working title of Merchant City Park.
Our strategy is to utilise the power of the Community Empowerment (Scotland) 2015 Act and request transfer of the land from GCC to the Community. In order to enable this to happen we will create a not for profit Company called Merchant City Park Limited (MCP). The Directors will be volunteers from within the Community. The Company will be limited by guarantee. The land will be transferred to MCP. If this request is unsuccessful, we will seek to acquire the land through the Community Right to Buy option. This will require that we raise sufficient funds to purchase the land which has an estimated commercial value of £3.5m. This we would hope to achieve by lobbying the appropriate grant funding bodies to provide the funds to enable purchase of the land, for example Scottish Land Fund.
Once the land is acquired, we will create a Park. The design of the Park will be determined after consultation with the Community. A Management structure formed from volunteers within the Community will be created to liaise with contractors/landscapers. The resources required to create the Park will be determined by the design of the Park, but it is anticipated that funding would again be required from grant funding bodies, for example the Woodlands Trust.
One further role of the Management Team will be to develop a plan outlining how the Park will be managed and maintained. This would include appropriate work schedules, risk assessments and other Health & Safety concerns to be addressed in relation to a public space. It is anticipated that much of this work will be done by volunteers.
Implementation of the Business Plan should ensure that the Park is properly managed and maintained thus providing an urban Community with a green space to be enjoyed by the Community into the foreseeable future.
Our Vision
To create a Park in the Merchant City district of Glasgow by converting what is currently a Car Park with twenty mature trees and a world famous mural into a green space for the benefit of the Community and visitors alike.
Our Mission
- To create a Company, run by members of the Community, called Merchant City Park Limited.
- To engage with the current owners of the Car Park, Glasgow City Council and utilising the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 and apply to Glasgow City Council to transfer ownership of the land to the local Community.
- If this is not possible to raise sufficient grant funding to acquire the land through purchase for the Community by Merchant City Park Ltd.
- To implement a development plan to convert the Car Park into a Park for the Community.
Our Values
- A commitment to consult with the Community to determine future actions.
- Raise awareness within the Community of the local environment.
- Provide an environment that improves the Health and Wellbeing of the Community.
- Provide an environment that is sympathetic to local fauna and wildlife.
- Preserve the ambience and amenity of the Merchant City.
- To enhance the attraction of a unique space within the Merchant City and by association the wider City Centre.
- Conform to Glasgow City Council regeneration objectives and policies.