Aberdeen Inspired continues to encourage feedback from its businesses in the run up to the crucial meeting of Aberdeen City Council’s City Growth and Resources Committee tomorrow.
The BID respects that a few of our businesses have differing views on the proposals and whatever decisions are made tomorrow, its commitment continues to be to work with all of them in bringing our city centre forward.
That said, most of those that have responded are supportive of the council officers’ recommendation around full pedestrianisation of Union Street between Market Street and Bridge Street.
Adrian Watson, chief executive of Aberdeen Inspired, said: “Although we are talking only a few hundred metres in length, the recommendation to take the bold step and pedestrianise this stretch of Union Street is what many of our businesses want as they see it as the strongest possible way to recover from the pandemic and the best step forward in re-shaping our city centre. We expect that the council will do all in its power to ensure that the city centre remains accessible and inclusive.
“Throughout considerable dialogue with our businesses, they have pushed for these measures and see it as a way of creating a more pedestrian-friendly city centre, that they can safely enjoy, in keeping with development found in most other progressive large towns and cities across the country and beyond.
“Many businesses feel this is an opportunity that doesn’t come along very often and if we are serious about building from the heart of our great city then we ought to grab onto this and bravely make this move for the sake of the city centre’s economic recovery and wellbeing.”