Published: Wednesday, 15th July, 2009 9:15am

Council's 'vote of no confidence' in Cowdenbeath

by Peter Swindon

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Fife Council"s abandonment of Brunton House is a vote of no confidence in Cowdenbeath, according to a town councillor and former provost.

Labour"s John Simpson has accused the local authority of damaging Cowdenbeath"s economy after dozens of Development Services staff were relocated and the Opportunity Centre closed.

The SNP-led administration also pulled the plug on former tenants Fife Advocacy when the charity lost out on a lucrative council contract to an English rival.

'Cowdenbeath High Street is under pressure with a number of shops closing and what I expect to see from Fife Council is a concentrated effort to support the local economy to get us through this difficulty and into a position where we can grow and move forward,' Cllr Simpson told the Times.

Cllr Simpson

'Pulling out of the business centre is hardly a vote of confidence in the town, indeed it is an outright disgrace that rather than invest the monies that is needed to bring the building up to a modern standard, they have simply abandoned any responsibility they had.

'The former Fife Regional Council invested significant sums of money into this building with two main purposes in mind. First, they wanted to create business incubator units to support business development in the Cowdenbeath area and second, they wanted to preserve the building as part of a regeneration approach to the town given its key location as a gateway site to Cowdenbeath.'

Councillor Simpson has demanded answers from Fife Council"s chief executive Ronnie Hinds.

In a letter to Mr Hinds he asks, 'Why was it felt correct that the council should pull out of this building? What alternative provision is there within Cowdenbeath for commercial and office activity? What consideration has been given to the economic impact of the closure of this building on Cowdenbeath? What will be the impact of the closure of the hall?

'I really want to know whether any of the above have been given consideration or are we simply drifting and making policy on this very important Cowdenbeath asset as we go?'

Robin Presswood, a development manager with Fife Council, said Brunton House has not been offered as a business centre for new tenants 'for several years'.

'The building has mainly been used as an office block for council staff from various teams,' he added.

Mr Presswood also admitted the building is soaking up council cash and could be flattened to make way for new business units.

He said, 'Fife Council is committed to maximising the availability of small business premises in this area but the considerable initial and then ongoing future costs involved in bringing Brunton House up to an acceptable standard do not represent best value for council tax payers.

'A council working group will review potential uses for the whole site over the coming months and this will consider whether replacement small business premises could be provided as part of the redevelopment of this site.'