Hundreds sign petition calling for Dundee Mills Observatory to be saved

Leisure and Culture Dundee are looking to shut the attraction in a bid to save £40,000 each year.

By Laura Devlin

June 1 2024, 7:00am

Mills Observatory.

Hundreds of people have signed a petition calling for the Mills Observatory to be saved from closure.

It was announced in May that its operator, Leisure and Culture Dundee (LACD), are looking to shut the attraction in a bid to save £40,000 each year.

The proposed closure is part of wider planned cuts, which could also see the Caird Park golf courses and Broughty Castle shut.

If all three city attractions are closed, LACD say they would save around £500,000 annually.

But the plans have been met with public anger and over 1,400 people have now signed a petition calling on Dundee’s local authority to reconsider.

Mills Observatory ‘important asset’

Among those backing the petition is Heather Johnston, who said the Mills Observatory helped shape her scientific career.

Writing on Change.org, she said: “I am an astrophysicist now. I study how giant planets form around different kinds of stars.

“I will submit my thesis this summer and will then go on to work on how we can track where these giant planets are born from their chemical fingerprint.

Mills Observatory when it was first opened in 1934. Image: DC Thomson.

“I do not believe I would have gotten here without seeing the northern lights for the first time on a very cold winter night at the top of the dome in my own hometown.”

She added: “To be clear, Mills Observatory is an important public asset for Dundee to have.

“In a city with a long history of scientific innovation and exploration, it has hosted and nurtured many aspiring scientists over the years. The next generation deserves that opportunity too.”

Family group look through a small telescope at the Mills Observatory situated on Balgay Hill, Dundee in the 1930s. Image: DC Thomson.

Public consultation ongoing

The petition was also supported by Steven Wallace, who wrote: “The Mills was and is part of my childhood.

“It’s one of the reasons I went to Dundee Uni to study Physics and it’s a tragedy to even consider closing it.”

A public consultation on the closure plans is being held by LACD and Dundee City Council and runs until the end of June.

A spokesperson for Dundee City Council previously said they are committed to working with local communities on the closure proposals and what they mean for the areas.