And Trumpton is the winner…
Delighted to see that Donald Trump’s controversial development on the Aberdeenshire coast has been awarded a national Carbuncle Award in the category of “Worst Planning Decision of the Year” by a panel of respected architects.
Gordon Young, editor of Prospect Magazine and www.architecturescotland.co.uk, said:
“We fully appreciate the economic arguments of allowing this scheme to go ahead – and we note some good architects are now on board to ensure a reasonable standard of design. However, our built environment seems to be getting increasingly influenced by purely commercial thinking. Glasgow Harbour, Leith Docks – and now this beautiful stretch of coastline – have apparently all been surrendered by public bodies to hard-nosed developers; a trend which is having a negative effect on the built environment.
“What is the point of establishing planning principles and designating areas, like the location of Trump’s development, as a Site of Special Scientific Interest if the rules are simply ripped up every time somebody gets their cheque book out?”
It’s unlikely that this award will stop, or even have much effect on the development at the Menie Estate, but it may make Alex Salmond and his political pals think twice before pulling the rug out from beneath the democratic planning process in the future.