Moray Council approves ‘deep clean’ to bring ‘old Elgin back’
A ‘deep clean’ of Elgin’s town centre has been agreed after accusations that the High Street looks a mess.
Support was given to Moray councillor Sandy Keith’s plan to use leftover funding from Elgin Bid to perform a deep clean and get “the old Elgin back”.
Other councillors agreed but said the clean is needed because there is “very little pride” from people in Elgin to maintain the town centre.
Town centre clean needed as ‘Elgin has no pride’
Moray Council’s civic leader John Cowe said: “There seems to be very little pride in Elgin” but was supportive of the measures to give the High Street a fresh start.
He said: “There’s paper everywhere. There’s cigarettes everywhere. People have no pride in their area, and it’s a damn shame because everyone else in Moray has pride.”
Deputy council leader Donald Gatt cited the work of the Cullen volunteer group and said they were a “fine example” of communities taking action to maintain their local area.
He added: “I would just like to suggest to the people of Elgin they need to do a wee bit more in their own backyard rather than look to the council.”
‘We want the old Elgin back’
Elgin councillor Sandy Keith’s proposal involves using money allocated to the membership of Elgin Bid, which was not renewed after a recent town centre vote.
He told councillors no new funding will be needed and added it will be good for “businesses, for tourists and for locals.”
He said: “You know it. I know it. The people know it. Even the dogs in the street know it, that Elgin town centre needs a proper clean-up.
“People shouldn’t have to look at the grime and dirt seen on the street and in the closes.
“We want the old Elgin back in the sense of cleanliness.”
Elgin is in need of ‘pick me up’ after St Giles closure
Councillor Keith continued that after losing the St Giles Centre in January, Elgin “is in need of a pick me up” and a town centre deep clean “can be just that.”
“It will prove that the Moray Council listens and cares about the state of the town centre,” he added.
Buckie Councillor Marc Macrae agreed and said it was a “great opportunity” to give Elgin “that spick and sparkle” and help the centre bounce back from the St Giles closure.
Council leader Kathleen Robertson also gave her support to the move, and said it was “really important economically” to “address cleanliness” at a time when the centre is popular with visitors.
Why is a High Street deep clean needed?
Elgin Bid took over the cleaning up of the town centre, and their street ambassadors saw the collection of many bags of rubbish a week for years.
However, after a collective vote from businesses in Elgin’s centre not to continue with Elgin Bid, these services have now been stopped.
As a result of the decision, the council have around £15,000 in funding left over which has now been allocated to the newly-agreed deep clean.
Several councillors agreed they hoped it would give Elgin’s town centre a head start on maintaining cleanliness in the future without local Bid support.
A High Street clean-up gathering was held last year and several councillors including council leader Kathleen Robertson and Elgin North’s Sandy Keith attended.
Councillor Robertson urged other Moray councillors to show their support and attend any future clean-ups of High Street.
Council officers were asked when the clean-up would take place, but declined to set an exact date.
