Town centre 'heritage gems' to be restored with £7m of lottery funds

More than £7m of National Lottery funding is be invested in four town centres across Scotland to save at-risk "heritage gems".

The Heritage Fund money will be split between Glasgow's Sauchiehall Street, Airdrie in North Lanarkshire, Girvan in South Ayrshire and Tarbert in Argyll and Bute.

The biggest allocation of £2.5m is for several projects in Girvan including renovating the Stair Park Bandstand, the "Stumpy Jail" steeple and improvements to the McKechnie Institute which is now a cultural hub.

Another £2.3m will go to developing a culture and heritage district for Glasgow's Sauchiehall Street, the latest phase of the street's revamp after decades of decline.

The investment in one of Glasgow's main throughfares will preserve the historic McLellan Galleries, enabling new uses by The Scottish Ensemble, Glasgow Film and youth charity Articulate.

The Cameron Memorial Fountain - a drinking fountain and clocktower that dates from 1896 - will also be restored.

Airdrie will receive £1.4m to restore and redevelop Airdrie Library which houses Scotland's smallest public observatory on its roof.

A shopfront improvement scheme will also improve the look of the town centre.

North Lanarkshire Council Leader Jim Logue said: "Airdrie was the site of the first public library in Scotland and a key part of our project is the development of the current Airdrie Library, which is also home to the only public observatory held in a public library in Europe.

"The project will create a resource for all our residents, offering facilities and services at the heart of the town."

In Tarbert in Argyll and Bute, £850,000 will be spent returning 10 vacant properties to residential use, repairing historic fishermen's store buildings on the quayside as well as skills training.

Girvan's Stumpy Jail - the remains of jail and courthouse built in 1825-27 and now the town's most prominent landmark - will have its steeple restored.

Also known as "Auld Stumpy", the name is thought to be derived from the sound of a Gaelic phrase meaning "Great Circle of Justice".

Money will also be spent on learning and heritage skills projects.

Eilish McGuinness, chief executive of the National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: "This marks an exciting moment, with fantastic investments in places that connect communities with their heritage gems.

"From Glasgow's iconic Sauchiehall Street, a place woven into decades of shared memories, to transforming the oldest public library in Scotland to celebrate the stories, people and places that shape us."