Sighthill redevelopment is just the start for North Glasgow

It’s no exaggeration to say I was blown away by how the vision for a new Sighthill has now emerged from what was there just a short time ago. 

I’ve been chair of the Sighthill Local Delivery group for four and a half years and it’s been amazing to play my part in the re-emergence of this long-neglected area of Glasgow. 

The Sighthill project is nearing its final phase, which began with stripping the 50 hectare site of the legacy of Victorian industrial contamination - what locals call the 'stinky ocean'.

One of the major milestones has been the construction of the new bridge which will connect the new Sighthill community directly to the city centre.

Despite its proximity to the heart of Glasgow, Sighthill, like so much of the inner North, has felt isolated, disconnected from city life.

The new bridge will redress that.

Commissioned by Glasgow City Council, this incredible £250 million project has the potential to completely reshape Sighthill’s relationship with the rest of the city - for its current community and those who will be attracted to the area.  And they will be.

The new Sighthill will offer 650 new homes both to rent and affordable to buy, new parkland, brand new schools and a new community campus.

It will also have many wonderful new green spaces including the Stone Circle, which has a time capsule buried for future generations to discover, Sports Facilities, a village green, Canal Terrace, and children’s designer play parks. 

It will have a boulevard running throughout the area and leading to a village square – the heart of any community and a wonderful place for the new residents to gather. 

During my visit, I met with the contractors who took our group on our very exciting tour of the site and a first upfront look for all of us of the new bridge. Even though not yet open to the public it’s enormous size is quite something!

Once a bustling mecca and home to the city’s heavy industrial past, the north of the city was a powerhouse in the 19th and 20th centuries, with many businesses relying on the canal network for the transportation of goods. 

But it suffered perhaps more than any other part of Glasgow when the factories shut and our industries changed.

Far too much of the communities we call home were abandoned and huge swathes left derelict. But over the past few years more and more is being earmarked for redevelopment and regeneration.

Sighthill is just the start and once the development is complete, it will definitely be a really attractive community for families who want to live less than a mile from Glasgow city centre whilst being part of a really well-designed new urban neighbourhood. 

My own Canal Ward borders Sighthill and that sense of optimism and re-emergence is spreading into Hamiltonhill, Ruchill, Cowlairs and Dundashill, with new mixed tenure housing developments planned in all. 

The first phase of work at Dundashill and the building of around 90 properties is due to start as early as next month. 

These new developments are the future of house building in Glasgow and I’m very proud of our ambitious plans and how they are materialising.

The creation of new communities along the canals winding path has totally transformed North Glasgow.

Our historic neighbourhoods which have often felt distant and separate from Glasgow will be front and centre of the regeneration programme we in the SNP are delivering for our communities across the city. 

As a councillor representing Canal Ward it is an enormous privilege to be here at his moment in time, to see the achievements of Glasgow’s first-ever SNP administration take shape and the lives and the communities we will improve.

 It IS time for the North!