A much-anticipated Angus “labour of love” is on the cusp of realisation after almost five years in the pipeline.
The Angus Skatepark Project began when two children walked into a community council meeting and asked for facilities after they were moved on by police.
An application for full planning permission has just been lodged with Angus Council and the six-figure community project is poised to bring a smile to those, now adult, teenagers.
Councillor David Fairweather said the skatepark is now a “not if but when”.
He said Jillian Low became involved with a project to bring a park to the West Links after the youths visited and has been integral to the effort ever since.
Mr Fairweather said: “I’m delighted that it’s got to the stage that the planning permission is going forward.
“Hopefully, by 2014 and 2015, all the work that has been done by the skatepark project, especially Jillian Low, comes to fruition and is the type of work they designed.
“They spent nearly £10,000 in getting their own design done, paid for by themselves, not by the council. A lot of work went into it.”
The planning application for a “concrete skatepark with related lighting, mounding, landscaping and street furniture” has been submitted by the local authority for its land at West Links on the seafront, in a 1,162 square-metre area by Dundee Road.
Design firm Gravity was given the task to form an idea with the £10,000 brief. The firm has put its name on more than 150 skateparks around the UK.
Including design fees, the estimated final bill is likely to be upwards of £150,000 to £200,000.
The project was given a £100,000 boost by the Scottish Government’s Active Places fund this year, alongside £160,000 for the Carnoustie project Ms Low explained how important the grant from Legacy 2014 was.
She said: “The whole thing will cost £202,000 and this £100,000 represents 50% of the funding and the maximum that we could have asked for.”
Both Arbroath and Carnoustie funds also received £30,000 from Angus Council.
The money was set aside by Councillor Mark Salmond, a former convener of corporate services, in a previous budget.