Yahoo News Film on £125m Govan Graving Docks makeover shows how plans will 'change the future' of River Clyde
A short film has been made to show how Govan Graving docks could look if £125 million transformation plans go ahead.
Rising Tides: Govan Graving Docks Rebirth, by BAFTA Scotland award-winning filmmaker Chris Leslie, explores the wider vision of the project and includes striking CGI images and in-depth interviews with those involved.
The plan is for 304 houses built on the southern boundary of the heritage site, which planners say will breathe new life into the 19th century docks, now derelict for over 40 years. New City Vision says its plans will take up around 20% of the site, with the rest being transferred to the community.
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The video comes after Glasgow City Council approved plans to reopen Drydock Number 1 at the site earlier this year, as well as the opening of the Govan to Partick bridge, and with it a direct link across the Clyde, in September. Drydock Number 1 has also been contracted to restore TS Queen Mary and will bring up to 50 local jobs.
Deirdre Gaughan, local resident and chairperson of Central Govan Action Plan (CGAP) said: “When the docks were open the place was thriving, so it was absolutely awful when the docks closed in 1988. I just know that this project can make Govan thrive again.”
Chris Leslie added: “For many, the Clyde feels like a shadow of its former self - a still and silent divider rather than a unifying force. The shipbuilding era days that once defined it is long gone, and much of its rich heritage has been dismantled and discarded.
“To me, it’s a tragedy that the city has turned its back on the river and its history. So, when I heard about the plans to develop Govan Graving Docks - especially with the idea of it becoming a working dry dock again - I approached O’Donnell Brown (architects) and asked if I could tell this story.
“I knew it was a story worth documenting, not just for the site but for the city and the river’s future.”
Chairman of New City Vision, Harry O’Donnell, said that unlike previous plans, the new ones maximise a range of uses for the site. He added: “The site has got many different components and some of these are reflective of comments and criticisms made against earlier applications.
“The team have tried to take on some of those criticisms and not just build some new houses on the site, but to try and reflect the area’s heritage as we try to create a new neighbourhood in Govan.
“There won’t be just housing, there will be places where people will be able to see things, there will be commercial activity, there will be new businesses created. So, there will be a hub which is still part of the fabric of Govan.”
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