ROADWORKS CARRIED out for Tesco in Dunfermline town centre saw CCTVcameras disconnected for almost a year, The Courier can reveal.
Local police officers are understood to be losing patience because mobile cameras have had to be deployed around Carnegie Drive, taking them out of circulation for other trouble hotspots.
According to Tesco, it was agreed that fixed cameras near the disused Velocity nightclub would be disconnected while contractors carried out major changes to the road layout to accommodate a new store.
However, sources have claimed fourcameras were taken out of service instead of the agreed two.
It is understood the cameras were disconnected for around 11 months and there were fears they would not be reinstated in time for the Friday before Christmas, known as “black Friday”, when Fife Constabulary is likely to be kept busy dealing with drunken disorder.
The supermarket giant gave an assurance all the cameras would be fixed within days.
A spokeswoman for Tesco said: “Our contractors have been liaising with Fife police throughout the duration of the project.
“As part of these discussions, it was agreed that the existing cameras would be professionally disconnected and that Fife police would install temporary cameras while the work was completed.
“I can confirm that all cameras will be reconnected this week.”
Mark Waterfall, CCTV coordinator of Fife Community Safety Partnership, said: “A number of permanent public space CCTV cameras have been inoperative for a period of time due to planned building works near the centre of Dunfermline.
“Mobile cameras have been deployed to cover this area.
“It is anticipated that the full complement of cameras will be up and running shortly.
“People using the town centre ofDunfermline can be assured that the area continues to be monitored effectively.”
Plans for a 60,000 sq ft store in Carnegie Drive were approved in May 2008 after Tesco spent three years working on proposals for the town, where it already has two branches.
However, nothing was done until a revised plan was given the go-ahead in 2010,reducing the number of parking spaces on the site.
The new store had been scheduled to open in spring but instead, revised plans are expected to be submitted around the same time.
Last month, the company said it was preparing a planning application for a smaller, grocery-only store.
An opening date has not been set for the scaled-down supermarket but 2014 has been mooted.
Tesco maintained it is committed to building a store that would create hundreds of jobs in the town.
Town centre councillor Neale Hanvey said Tesco had a responsibility to ensure the town’s amenities were not affected while the proposal went through the planning stage.
He said: “It doesn’t matter what size the store is going to be or how many shelves it will have, if Tesco are serious about footfall at the site, we need to get the car park back.
“We need the amenity that has been taken away from the town centre reinstated as soon as possible.
“If mobile cameras are being used to cover this area then we are missing an opportunity to monitor activity elsewhere, such as youth disorder.”
“It’s incumbent on them to return the amenity to the town centre.”
arobertson@thecourier.co.uk