By Norman Silvester

COUNCIL chiefs are facing a race against time to get a multi-million pound improvement project for Greenock underway.

Inverclyde has been handed almost £20 million of UK Government Levelling Up cash to improve the town centre and open up access by road.

But a start date for the major infrastructure works - set to get underway in the second quarter of this year - is in danger of slipping.

Municipal Buildings chiefs are now coming under pressure to deliver a 'timetable for action' as soon as possible.

Greenock Telegraph:

The project involves the partial demolition of the Oak Mall shopping centre and realignment of the A78 which cuts through the heart of the town.

In an official report in January Inverclyde Council said the Mall demolition was expected to take between April and June, followed by the road demolition in the third quarter of 2024 (July to September).

However, five months later work has still to begin on either, despite a completion deadline of March 2026 set by the UK Government as a condition of funding.

It is the latest in a series of delays for the project.

The council initially stated that its aim was to get construction underway in October 2023 and then completed by March of 2025.

Greenock Telegraph:

Greenock-born Conservative West Scotland MSP Jamie Greene said: “It’s essential that this funding from the UK government achieves its objective of revitalising Greenock’s town centre. 

"The council should provide assurances and a timetable for action as soon as possible.”

Levelling Up funding was first granted by the UK Government in January last year.

The development aims to open up space and reconnect the town centre by getting rid of the current A78 flyover which cuts through High Street.

Greenock Telegraph:

The main road will instead be lowered to ground level and the Bullring roundabout will disappear, to be replaced by a low-level road.

The Hector McNeil council building which houses health and social care, will also be demolished along with around 40 per cent of the shopping mall.

Officials say the regeneration scheme will make Greenock more attractive, bring in visitors and create new opportunities.

Inverclyde Council yesterday insisted that demolition work would 'begin soon' and that the completion deadline of March 2026 would be met.

Council leader Stephen McCabe said: "Elected members are obviously keen to see this project start as soon as possible but recognise that it is a complex project involving a number of interlinked sub-projects, stakeholders and partners. We receive regular updates on the project and are confident that it will be completed within the required timescale. 

"It will have a transformative impact on Greenock Town Centre and along with the ongoing investment in West Blackhall Street, the completion of the new cruise visitor centre and our developing plans for the new Towns Fund demonstrates our commitment to the regeneration of central Greenock."

A council spokesperson for the local authority added: “The Levelling Up project is the largest single investment in any of our towns and villages for decades with the aim of opening up the town centre and improving access, creating better links, delivering modern retail and leisure space, and generally transforming Central Greenock for the benefit of residents and visitors and to make it a more attractive place to live, work, visit, and do business, now and in the future.

“We have secured £19.4m of external investment from the UK Government towards the total £21.58m estimated cost of the project and a condition of that grant funding is that work must be completed by March 2026 and we are working towards that deadline alongside our main contractors with work expected to start soon.

“This is a major, complex, regeneration project and a complex one involving a number of partners across a number of sites and we are working closely our various partners behind the scenes to finalise the details so that we can share important information with all relevant stakeholders, including residents, staff, the wider public, businesses, and, of course, readers of the Greenock Telegraph, as soon as possible.  

“Over 80 per cent of people supported the proposals during the initial public consultation in 2022 and we hope to organise additional public information and engagement sessions throughout the duration of the project to gain valuable feedback from local people and businesses and to help shape elements of the final design.

“These are exciting times for Greenock with unprecedented investment of more than £60m across several projects, most of which are aimed at enhancing the town centre."