GREENS SLAM BEACH CAR PARK PLANS
Sarah Beattie-Smith, Scottish Green Party MSP candidate for the South of Scotland, has slammed 'bewildering' proposals to extend the existing Marine Parade car park in North Berwick onto the beach, and called on East Lothian Council to involve the local community to address parking problems in the area.
The planning application, submitted by East Lothian Council, would see the car park extended by nine metres at a cost of £350,000. Local Green Party candidates and activists have thrown their support behind the 2900 strong petition started by resident Claire Devereux to oppose these plans.
Sarah Beattie-Smith recently visited the site of the proposed extension alongside fellow Green candidates Eurig Scandrett and Isla Aitken. Following the visit Sarah said:
“These proposals to spend such an extortionate amount of money extending a car park onto the beach to create just ten more parking spaces, is frankly a bewildering. It's no secret that North Berwick has a parking problem, but shelling out a huge sum of money to create just ten more parking spaces is clearly not the solution.
“If the Council had held any kind of meaningful consultation with the community, they would have found a great deal of opposition to the plans amongst local people. This is just another example of decisions being taken out of the hands of the communities who will be most affected.
“I urge East Lothian Council to reconsider these proposals, taking into account the strength of community opposition and the importance of the beach to locals and visitors alike.”