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Menie thanks to Chamber

Donald Trump has issued a personal thank you to Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce members for their support for his £1 billion golf development plan.

The flamboyant American entrepreneur and star of the television programme "The Apprentice" says that without that support his organisation might well have walked away from what has been described as potentially the biggest economic boost to the North of Scotland since the discovery of oil.

In an interview for business bulletin he also singled out Geoff Runcie, the Chamber's chief executive, for particular praise.

"The support we received from the Chamber and its members was tremendous and there is no doubt they were instrumental in the decision process," he said. "We are not only grateful for the support but honoured by it. It was the support of groups like the Chamber which kept us motivated to see this job through during some very difficult times.

"About a year ago, following the decision of the infrastructure services committee of Aberdeenshire Council (to turn down the development), it seemed like we were facing a wall but it was business groups like the Chamber which really gave us the vision and the support we needed at that time to see beyond what turned out to be a temporary road block.

"It was the support we received from the Chamber, and the general population, which made it very clear to us that we were doing the right thing.

"At that time we were receiving literally hundreds of e-mails, letters and calls every day and they are still coming in. We still receive, almost daily, letters from people in all walks of life, from people in golf, from contractors, from people in construction and just plain old citizens who say they are glad to see that we fought this thing through.

"We have had very few negative letters, I could probably count them on one hand. For every one there has been against there have been hundreds in support. We have read every letter and they actually matter to us.

"I think the impact of the development is already being felt. We have retained a number of local contractors who have begun to completely renovate Menie House and do similar renovations to Menie Park Lodge where our offices are.

"We have gone out of our way to use local people for these projects and we will using Acanthus Architects who are based in Huntly to design the clubhouse.

"Most of the companies are based in the North-east or if not in the North-east they are Scottish, with just a couple of exceptions.
"We are also using Gareth Hoskins Architects of Glasgow for the masterplan.

"We have already spent tens of millions in the local economy and we are aggressively working with the council so we can begin the project and I think that will silence a lot of the critics.

"These benefits are going to be multiplied for years to come. If you look to the areas where many of our existing projects are sited the benefits are widespread. We employ locals, we donate to local charities, we get very involved with the local community and nowadays, especially when in development, to have a good relationship with the local community makes good business sense.

"Our interests are aligned and I think Geoff Runcie has done an outstanding job organising the local business community and really getting behind us.

"It is not something you see in every area and I think Geoff has been great. The Chamber has been very forward thinking and has been able to see our vision through a lot of the haar."

Mr Trump insisted that the global credit crunch would not impact on the plans for Menie estate and that the people of the North-east could expect to see a lot more of him as the project develops because of his great personal interest in it.

He said he was constantly seeking to make things better and more efficient as he strives to create the best golf course in the world.