To me, the transformation of Edinburgh’s Waterfront has always been more than a project to simply regenerate a neglected area of our Capital.
I firmly believe the revival of Granton is all about people and communities.
That’s why we will build houses that people want to live in – with a big range of choice to suit say the first time buyer or a family. And most importantly – to ensure they are affordable.
We want to create sustainable communities. We are looking, not only at the environment but at a community where people can work, live, shop and play.
To ensure this, I have two simple tests – how long do people need to travel for a pint of milk or a pint of beer. If it’s more than five minutes then you don’t have a community as people will simply jump in their cars to find what they want. The second test is I simply ask myself if I would want to live there and if the answer is ‘no’ then we need to think again.
Edinburgh should rightly have a waterfront which sits equal with any other in the world. We have set the vision high and I know this will present us with many challenges, but we need to think big about the Waterfront at Granton: and deliver something truly exceptional.