The plans to fast-track a major regeneration of the area to the north of the city were unveiled today when Sighthill was revealed as the preferred site for the Athletes' Village if the city secures the Games. The area's size and proximity to the city centre make it the ideal location.
More than 800 new homes will be built in Sighthill – even if Glasgow loses out in the Games bidding process.
And because of the short time frame of the bid process, work to transform the community will need to start before the host city is announced.
This means that, subject to approval at a meeting of the council's Executive Committee next Thursday, the revival of the area will go ahead up to 20 years earlier than planned regardless of whether Glasgow wins the bid.
Regeneration plans include:
l Up to 700 homes – comprising a mix of homes for rent and private sale, built on the site of the Pinkston multi-storey flats.
l A further 130 homes for social rent, built by Glasgow Housing Association on the site of the already demolished Fountainwell multi-storeys.
l A new education and community campus, including nursery and primary schools.
l A community square.
l A new bridge over the M8 providing better pedestrian links to the city centre.
l Public realm works and new shops.
l A network of green spaces linking the area to the city centre.
l Land decontamination.
Sighthill is the largest of eight priority regeneration areas – known as Transformational Regeneration Areas (TRAs) – in Glasgow.
Until now, it was likely to be one of the last of those communities to be redeveloped, and the regeneration work would not have taken place for another 20 years.
The new 'village' would provide accommodation for 6000 athletes and officials and would be on a similar scale to the Athletes' Village currently being built in Dalmarnock in the East End of the city for the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.
Councillor Gordon Matheson, leader of Glasgow City Council, said: "The Youth Olympic Games bid has provided us with an opportunity to speed up what will be a generational change for Sighthill.
"The bid gives us the impetus to work with the local community and our partners, and to lever in private money, to rebuild Sighthill as a popular and vibrant community.
"The regeneration of the area was always a priority for the city but the bid means it can now happen much faster than ever envisaged.
"The transformation of the area will bring hundreds of new homes for local people, as well as a new school campus, community facilities and better links for pedestrians to the city centre.
"It will also create jobs and apprenticeship places, and help unlock the development potential of other areas to the north of the city centre.
"What's great about this is that we need to start work on this regeneration before we know if we've won the bid.
"As a result of Glasgow just bidding for the Games, people's lives will be transformed. You'd struggle to find a bid anywhere in the world that delivers a legacy like that."
If the bid for the Games is successful, the Pinkston part of the site would be used firstly as the area for the Athletes' Village before being turned into homes for the people of Glasgow after the 2018 event.
Three of the multi-storey blocks at Pinkston were already earmarked for demolition, with residents already in the process of being rehoused.
Landlords, Glasgow Housing Association (GHA), will now be asked to reconsider the future of the two remaining blocks, which were previously due to be kept and fully refurbished after a successful campaign by residents.
The 400 residents from those two blocks will be offered a range of options for moving to a new home.
This may include the chance to move to one of the new-build homes in Sighthill or to one of GHA's other nearby new-build sites such as Barmulloch, Roystonhill and Duke Street/High Street.
There will also be opportunities for GHA tenants to move to other new-build homes across the city, or to an existing GHA home which has been fully modernised.
GHA will meet with each resident individually to discuss options and find out their preferences and needs – for example whether they want to stay in the area or move somewhere else.
It is expected all residents will be moved into their new homes and the five tower blocks demolished by 2016.
The Youth Olympic Games sees the world's best young athletes, aged 15 to 18, compete in all 28 Olympic disciplines over 12 days of competition.
Glasgow was selected by the British Olympic Association to be the UK's chosen candidate city in February this year and faces competition from Buenos Aires, in Argentina, Guadalajara, in Mexico, Medellín, in Colombia, Poznan, in Poland, and Rotterdam, in the Netherlands.
The winning city will be announced in July next year.
stef.lach@ heraldandtimes.co.uk
