A West End councillor has called on Dundee City Council to use an empty space to help ease parking on a busy street.
Councillor Fraser Macpherson said the Technopole site on Blackness Road, opposite the fire station, could be used to alleviate parking issues in the area saying the local authority should be “supporting our local businesses” on the street.
The Liberal Democrat councillor has made enquiries to transform the land, which has been sitting dormant for a number of years, but his initial proposal has been rejected.
Mr Macpherson said: “I was told by director of city development Mike Galloway that they ‘have no mind’ to use the area for parking.
“It has been sitting empty for more than a decade.
“I am continuing to pursue this as the council has a responsibility to address this problem that businesses and residents face.
“If you walk down Blackness Road and ask people they will all say that finding a parking space is difficult. I don’t see why that should be when there is wasted space right there.”
Dundee City Council has said plans in place to develop the nearby Tayside Scientific Services building so cannot entertain the notion of developing the land for parking.
A spokesperson for Dundee City Council said: “Life sciences remains a key sector of the local economy and there is currently a proposal in the Tay Cities Deal (Growing the Tayside Biomedical Cluster) that could lead to development of the Technopole.
“The Proposed Dundee Local Development Plan 2, which outlined the land use strategy for this site going forward was unanimously approved by the City Development Committee at its meeting in August.”
The Technopole site runs to the east of Annfield Road, from Blackness Road in the north to Hawkhill in the south, and was created to establish biotechnology, creative industries and digital media operations.
Mr Macpherson said this should not get in the way of the land’s ability to alleviate parking.
He added: “I am only talking about using part of the land, not all of it as there is a long term plan as part in the Tay Cities Deal and that could bring jobs in to the city so I am absolutely not against that at all.
“But that is at least a few years off so in the meantime the land could be used to help local businesses and residents.
“We should at least be investigating this.”
