I Just Emailed The Council From Their Online 'report It' Facility

[terenceandphilip]

these were my observations i made public to them.

 

 

The Monkey House on Union Street is festooned with large green and yellow weeds - can't you do something, or make the tennant do something? Is anybody actually serious about the state of the city centre?

The Bells Hotel has a tree growing out of the roof, as does the old E&M's building and there are thigh high weeds growing out of the pavement on the corner of Rose Street.

At the same time, as and to save me filling out another of these forms, is anything ever actually getting done with UTG? A children's park and a cafe would do wonders - just a tiny bit of imagination somewhere wouldn't go amiss.

The only success story just now is the Duthie Park, which I believe the council gain little credit for. If it weren't for Friends of Duthie Park, it would have been left to rot - cutting the grass seems the limit of council care (see Hazelhead golf courses for proof)

Lastly, is one part time person working on dismantling St Nicholas House? I've never seen such slow 'progress'. Barnie Crocket keeps saying there's a plan, but noone I speak with sees much evidence of anything. Is it better to raise these issues here online, or should I write to my local councillors?

 

[Pudgie]

Two things that you seem to have which make you better at judging these things than a coonciler!

 

 

 

1) Eyes

&

2) A brain

[Dynamo]

I wrote them a letter a couple months back about the state of the roads.

[Bluto10]

come on lads, you lot sound fuckin patheitc, like middle aged old grunters with nothing better to do.

 

writing to the fcukin council. brilliant. like theyre ever going to do anything about it.

[Pudgie]

come on lads, you lot sound fuckin patheitc, like middle aged old grunters with nothing better to do.

 

writing to the fcukin council. brilliant. like theyre ever going to do anything about it.

Exactly!

 

[terenceandphilip]

i know bluto, it seems to be a bit Victor Meldrew, but if noone complains they probably think they're doing a great job. The city centre is an embarrassment, and the out of town shopping is no excuse. Edinburgh, Dundee, Glasgow and inverness are miles ahead of us.

[Bluto10]

dinna sit back and passively voice you concerns, get outh there and in their faces.

these guys are a joke and we pay their fat pensions.

 

want to improve UTG?

buy a edinburgh style coffee tardis and set it up down there. show them what can be done with little or no effort/money.

 

 

failing that run for council.

 

if you care that much, you can make a difference

[Bluto10]

id be intereted to see where aberdeen ranks in a best cities to live in the UK list.

 

lets say, population of over 100k.

 

i think it would be pretty far down.

but with a beach, decent job market and mountains on the doorstep, it should be reasonsbaly high

[daytripping]

id be intereted to see where aberdeen ranks in a best cities to live in the UK list.

 

lets say, population of over 100k.

 

i think it would be pretty far down.

but with a beach, decent job market and mountains on the doorstep, it should be reasonsbaly high

 

Aberdeen isn't a bad City to live in, it could be way better though. Needs regeneration in the Centre and improved transport.

 

The council and the band of nimby s have a lot to answer for.

[dave_min]

id be intereted to see where aberdeen ranks in a best cities to live in the UK list.

 

lets say, population of over 100k.

 

i think it would be pretty far down.

but with a beach, decent job market and mountains on the doorstep, it should be reasonsbaly high

 

It was second after Reading.

 

Despite all the annoyances in Aberdeen its a pretty decent place to live.

[weapon]

I emailed the Aberdeen council and Dyce MP a couple of weeks ago moaning about the general state of dyce, the lack of pavements and traffic issues with the new business developments at ABZ and D2.

 

Some parts of dyce look like an overgrown jungle, especially along Dyce Drive just past the bond building.

 

And what's with the lack of pavements, they just stop in places:

 

http://goo.gl/maps/j0k7v

 

Into winter and these become muddy dirt trails.

 

For all the money Dyce generates for the local and UK economies it looks like an utter dump

[Pudgie]

these guys are a joke and we pay their fat pensions.

 

want to improve UTG?

buy a edinburgh style coffee tardis and set it up down there. show them what can be done with little or no effort/money.

Totally correct, especially with the first line, but where in the hell do you "buy" an old police box?!

[Bluto10]

Totally correct, especially with the first line, but where in the hell do you "buy" an old police box?!

 

dunno, but edinburgh has that coffee chain with them. forgotten the name now.

theyd be perfect for UTG.

[Pudgie]

dunno, but edinburgh has that coffee chain with them. forgotten the name now.

theyd be perfect for UTG.

Thinking about it, I don't think anyone would use them. It's too out of the way. And for all the days that you'd be able to use them. Unless there's a big "The Simpson's Movie" style glass roof going over it?

[daytripping]

I emailed the Aberdeen council and Dyce MP a couple of weeks ago moaning about the general state of dyce, the lack of pavements and traffic issues with the new business developments at ABZ and D2.

 

Some parts of dyce look like an overgrown jungle, especially along Dyce Drive just past the bond building.

 

And what's with the lack of pavements, they just stop in places:

 

http://goo.gl/maps/j0k7v

 

Into winter and these become muddy dirt trails.

 

For all the money Dyce generates for the local and UK economies it looks like an utter dump

 

It's weird why the cycle paths and pavements on Dyce drive stop at the airport lights, 90% of people head straight on to their workplace.

 

And those business parks looking fucking massive.

[NorthernLights24]

id be intereted to see where aberdeen ranks in a best cities to live in the UK list.

 

lets say, population of over 100k.

 

i think it would be pretty far down.

but with a beach, decent job market and mountains on the doorstep, it should be reasonsbaly high

 

Actually any time a survey like these are released Aberdeen does reasonably well.

[ChutneyLove]

_{On the original point - the Monkey Hoose was a boarded up, derelict building for years before the current tenant went in and refurbished. You would have thought he would have a duty of care for his own business to keep the aesthetics at least passable for his customers though? Too much of the marching powder, maybe?}

[Bluto10]

Actually any time a survey like these are released Aberdeen does reasonably well.

 

why does ahbdy moan about it then

 

my point was following on from t&p's quote

Edinburgh, Dundee, Glasgow and inverness are miles ahead of us.

 

its nae just boring cities like dundee and inverness that are more dynamic and thriving than aberdeen. its all th other places throughout the UK, even places youd least suspect like leeds, birmingham, bristol, sheffield etc.

 

i genuinely think aberden could be a great city to visit. if it made the most of what it has, of course.( i.e. UTG, castlegate, union street, the harbour and beach).

 

has union square been worth the investment?

[spamspamspam]

_{On the original point - the Monkey Hoose was a boarded up, derelict building for years before the current tenant went in and refurbished. You would have thought he would have a duty of care for his own business to keep the aesthetics at least passable for his customers though? Too much of the marching powder, maybe?}

 

 

That and the cost.

 

I'm looking at around £5000 to clean and point my wee building, I'd say one of the Union Street buildings would cost that and a hell of a lot more to clean up.

 

No shop/bar can afford to pay that out just to make the stones shine.

 

The council have to find a way of making the landlords and owners of the buildings fork out and not the tenants.

[spamspamspam]

why does ahbdy moan about it then

 

my point was following on from t&p's quote

Edinburgh, Dundee, Glasgow and inverness are miles ahead of us.

 

its nae just boring cities like dundee and inverness that are more dynamic and thriving than aberdeen. its all th other places throughout the UK, even places youd least suspect like leeds, birmingham, bristol, sheffield etc.

 

i genuinely think aberden could be a great city to visit. if it made the most of what it has, of course.( i.e. UTG, castlegate, union street, the harbour and beach).

 

has union square been worth the investment?

 

You're forgetting all that countryside just 10 minutes from the city centre in almost every direction min.

 

No, Union Square was the last nail in Union Streets coffin. It was pretty much dead by the time Union Square came along anyway, St Nic, Bon Accord and the Trinity had already taken care of that.

 

I dont think the council invested anything in it. All its done though is create more congestion down there, doubled the amount of the same shitty shops we have and allowed cash4gold to take over the final shops they didnt have on the main street.

[Bluto10]

You're forgetting all that countryside just 10 minutes from the city centre in almost every direction min.

 

No, Union Square was the last nail in Union Streets coffin. It was pretty much dead by the time Union Square came along anyway, St Nic, Bon Accord and the Trinity had already taken care of that.

 

I dont think the council invested anything in it. All its done though is create more congestion down there, doubled the amount of the same shitty shops we have and allowed cash4gold to take over the final shops they didnt have on the main street.

 

aye countryside like some nice dunes and the deeside way is great.

but i think most cities have something similar.

 

if US has had that effect then it really is time to do away with the trinity centre, and open up the bridge again.

 

give aberdeen back a nice vista again.

 

then manybe in time do the same with M&S, St Nic centre and house.

 

when you think about it liek that it really is stupid to spend so much levelling the UTG.

[At The Border Guy]

Best to go straight to councillors/MSPs about stuff in the opening post. The council will only take forward things that are causing immediate danger to people. Beyond that, they're a bunch of impartial civil servants who pretty much aren't allowed (and in most cases can't be arsed) to take stuff like that forward. Know a few people who worked in a similar role in another council and they were essentially there as a buffer to filter out the immediate problems from the general gripes. Councillors/MSPs are elected to make a big deal out of all this stuff, so get in touch with them.

[Dynamo]

I think despite it's faults Aberdeen is one of the better places to live in the UK.

 

Bluto - it's never going to compete with London/Manchester etc with things to do/see, due to the comparative size of those places, but then it also misses much the of the gangs and crime that a big city like London has to deal with to.

[terenceandphilip]

I think Union Square has been of real benefit to Aberdeen, particularly the knock on effect on the Green and surrounding buildings. Lots of buildings have been properly cleaned like above the Crit and the Carmelite. Granite looks beautiful once its sandblasted, not that you can expect every building to be cleaned like that. Guild Street, the bus station, the Green etc etc were a dump before Union Square - its been a boon for Aberdeen, as well as providing first class shopping. I really like it.

 

But that's no excuse for Union Street, it really isn't. Certainly not to the extent of allowing large yellow weeds to grow out of the Monkey House. You can't say Union Square causes that, that's ridiculous!!!

[terenceandphilip]

Here was my reply:

 

 

Thank you for reporting the issues detailed below.

 

I have passed your concerns with regard to weeds and trees in private buildings to the Council's Environmental Protection Team.

 

The weeds on adopted roads and pavements throughout the City were sprayed in May. Although there was a high success rate, the weeds at the corner of Rose Street must have been missed and will be sprayed over the next few weeks.

 

With regard to Union Terrace Gardens, a friends group has been set up including Councillors and Council Officers that are taking forward improvement plans for the garden and these include a café and children's play park.

 

It is good to hear that the Duthie Park restoration is a success and disappointing to hear that you believe that the Council and Council Officers working on the project gain little credit for this.

 

Hazlehead Golf Course is now under the control of Sport Aberdeen and is maintained by a private company and not Aberdeen City Council.

 

I am not in a position to comment on progress with regard to dismantling St.Nicholas House but I hope I have assisted with your other concerns and issues.

 

 

 

Regards Barney Crocket *

 

 

 

 

* not really (though the reply is genuine - it just wasn't from the man himsel')

[The Boofon]

Are they dandelions or creeping buttercups?

[gla5gowdon]

I found Reading to be a depressing place. Hated it.

 

Union Street is awful. Pedestrianise the full thing and cafe it up.

[terenceandphilip]

I disagree strongly about the Duthie Park, the council were content to do nothing with it. It has been saved by friends of Duthie Park, although admittedly there were involved obviously once the ball got rolling. The council would have done nothing but cut the grass like mentioned.

 

Duthie Park official reopening is on Sunday and Armed Forces Day parade is on Union Street on Saturday at 11am. Both should be great, you can't beat a big pipe band. Nothing like it in the world.

[terenceandphilip]

Are they dandelions or creeping buttercups?

 

 

that's the spirit that keeps the city in the mess it's in. People don't give a f3ck, it's either the 4x4 driving uber selfish or mink valley central. Aberdeen's split in two and neither side has a social conscience.

[Karl Fletcher]

With regard to Union Terrace Gardens, a friends group has been set up including Councillors and Council Officers that are taking forward improvement plans for the garden and these include a café and children's play park.

 

Bookmarked.

 

Let's see if this actually comes to fruition.