The Vennel Starter Project
One Linlithgow commissioned Page\Park Architects to design staged proposals about what the Vennel could look like with a small amount of investment.
Working with award winning architects, Page\Park, One Linlithgow has produced a vision document for the Vennel area of the town centre. DOWNLOAD REPORT
The Vennel is a 1960s development, located off High Street and just a few minutes’ walk from Linlithgow Palace. It is mainly residential, but also encompasses a library, shop units, and – the focus of the starter project – a slender strip of public realm connecting High Street and Linlithgow Loch.
Page\Park Architects has been appointed by One Linlithgow BID to produce a vision for the Vennel, exploring how this valuable piece of public realm might be developed incrementally to better serve the community and businesses of Linlithgow.
The document considers some of the key historical and social context in Linlithgow and sets out high-level proposals for the Vennel that One Linlithgow might take forward as independent projects in the future.
The Vennel is a blank canvas for Linlithgow, but it’s likely that its transformation will take place incrementally over a number of projects. The strategy is therefore set out in three phases by Page\Park:
• short term projects, with costs in the region of £3-5k;
• medium term projects, at £15-18k;
• and long- term projects, with higher capital costs.
This is with a view to helping the BID to be responsive to different funding opportunities that might present themselves, and not to be reliant on a single large funding windfall.
The report presents a vision of what these phases of delivery might look like, from the short-term ‘quick wins’, to the more complex, long-term aspirations for this key piece of public realm.
This strategy is flexible, and Page\Park has encouraged the BID to continually reflect on how public use of the space changes over the course of the project, and what other opportunities might open up to use the space for public benefit in different ways.
Funding
Following publication of the “Vision Document” the BID team have set about attempting to source leveraged funding to enable the project to take place. A grant application has been submitted for consideration to the West Lothian Council ‘Place Based Capital Grant Community Choices’ fund that would require the project to be signed off by March 2024 and completed by the end of September next year.
As an established Business Improvement District (BID), One Linlithgow is strategically positioned to tap into larger sources of funding to be able to deliver projects of a larger scale, to benefit their towns and communities.
Evelyn Noble, chair of One Linlithgow said “this is a fantastic opportunity to improve the public realm of Linlithgow and improve the overall visitor experience to the town. This can only be a benefit to local businesses and the overall prosperity and appeal our beautiful town.”
Community Feedback
The Vision document has been presented and put into the public domain, to get valuable feedback from all people with an interest in Linlithgow.
