Recovering drug addicts will rub shoulders with families and young children at a new community hub in Lochee, leading a senior local councillor to call for assurances over its management.
Work is now well underway on the adaptation of empty units on Lochee High Street which, once completed, will provide much-needed community space.
The £370,000 project is taking shape in response to calls from local people and the shared space is expected to be up and running by the autumn.
It will attempt to cater for all ages and needs, offering space to job clubs, parent and toddler groups and activity groups for young people, or simply a place for people to pop in for tea and a chat.
Crucially, however, it will also look to be a base from which health organisations can look to support people recovering from substance use in the heart of the area.
Veteran Lochee Councillor Tom Ferguson said he hoped the hub would deliver on all its promises for the community and said he wished those behind the plan “all the best”.
He added, however, that careful management would be need to ensure that it is a success and said he hoped its uses would not lead to the centre and surrounding area becoming stigmatised.
The hub – part of a wider regeneration of the Lochee area – will be managed by Dundee Voluntary Action with support from Dundee City Council and Dundee Alcohol and Drugs Partnership.
Councillor Ferguson said: “I welcome the creation of this hub and hope to see the work completed as soon as possible.
“It should be of great benefit to all the community, but it is important that there is separation of services and I have not yet seen any detail on how this will be achieved.
“The hub will have a whole variety of uses – it is of course not all about drugs – but careful management will be needed.
“You will get doomsayers, but we must be a caring society and my heart goes out to those people who have had their lives blighted by alcohol and drugs.
“Lochee has always been good at looking after its people and this centre should provide facilities that can help people in need.
“Nonetheless, I will be very interested to see its formative days. It must be managed carefully.”
It is hoped that the hub will also support families and people looking to get into work, as well as offering a wide range of health and wellbeing provision.
Community groups from across Lochee will be invited to use the space for themselves and, over time, the wider community will be invited to help shape the services available.
The Lochee Community Hub will be the city’s second, with the first having been operating in the Whitfield area for the past 28 months.
Dundee City Council hopes, over time, to create a city-wide network of hubs each offering a variety of services and advice but also tailored to the individual needs of communities.
For more information on the Lochee hub, or to play a part in its future direction, visit icsfeedback@dundeecity.gov.uk.
