BANGOUR VILLAGE DEVELOPMENT

BANGOUR VILLAGE

The community council have formed a Sub-section specifically to deal with matters associated with the housing development known as 'Bangour Village' which is adjacent to Dechmont Village.

Our representative is in constant communication with the developers of the site and has been raising concerns such as:

· Education
· Transport
· Amount of houses
· Effects on Dechmont Village
· Traffic volume
· Anti-social behaviour

Update January 2024

House construction is due to begin in February 2024. The first area where construction will begin is along the “valley”, that is the part of the site adjacent to the A89.

Construction of the footpath from Dechmont going past the site and the pedestrian crossing at the Western side of the roundabout is not likely to begin this year.

The developer has been given planning permission to demolish the small shop on the site. A final decision has not been reached on the future of this building.

The temporary traffic lights on the A89 are due to be removed next week (end of January).

The Community Council will continue to have regular onsite meetings with the site managers and will provide updates when appropriate.

Update November 2023

the site will be closed over the Festive period
the future of the shop is currently under discussion
the site entrance will be the old Bathgate Road
a temporary boiler will be installed onsite
the completion date for the road at the entrance of the village has been extended

Can we also remind anyone experiencing problems with anti-social behaviour related to the Bangour Village site, to report any incidents to the police by calling them on 101. Please ask for an incident number as this will enable the local police to monitor reports and put plans in place to address problems.

As a result of the community council reporting recent issues to the police, the area will be visited more regularly by local officers.

The community council is continually working to support the needs of the local community therefore we welcome feedback, comments and participation from any residents of Dechmont who would like to contribute. Please contact us (see above) if you have any concerns relating to matters which affect the local community.

N.B. If you become aware of any criminal activity or feel threatened in way whatsoever, please call 999 immediately.

Profile Security number for the main switch board is 0131 554 7527

Chair of Dechmont Community Council

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BANGOUR VILLAGE REDEVELOPMENT UPDATE (February 2023)

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Please share this important information with family and friends.

Construction will soon be commencing on the south west side of the site therefore:

Fencing has been erected for the safety of the general public
The whole redevelopment is a construction site and access will become increasingly restrictive as work progresses.
Anyone accessing the site must comply with the restrictions
Non-compliance of the restrictions may result in additional restrictions being put in place by HSE

Permitted access Areas

The woods adjacent to the mortuary road
Around the church
The road up to and around the nurse's home.

The development is discussed at the Community Council meetings. You are welcome to attend. They are held at 6pm on the last Wednesday of the month at the Dechmont Memorial Hall.

Jim Watson

Joint Planning Officer

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LATEST UPDATE ON BANGOUR VILLAGE December 2022

Access to the site

The developers have agreed to enable continued access to the site. This access will be limited to specific areas that have not been fenced off along with warning notices. Anyone using the site is requested to respect the restrictions, along with instructions given by the construction workers and site security.

The first area that is currently fenced off is the south of the site from the railway path at Dechmont to the Old Bangour Road. This includes the sports field.

There are no restrictions at the north of the site leading up from the church and villa 7. You cannot complete a circuit of the site.

I will be having regular meetings with the on-site project manager to discuss any issues or problems, with a view to this agreement continuing.

Works on the A89

The works being undertaken along with traffic restrictions are required to enable the construction of a roundabout, along with a Pelican crossing and the relocation of a high-pressure water mains.

This work will be done in two stages. The current work will stop before work on the slip road from the M8 begins in January next year. It will resume when this has been completed. This is necessary as the A89 will be the main diversion route from the M8 via Deans to the dual carriageway.

Moving forward

Construction is due to begin next spring at the south of the site including the area around the boiler house.

This includes the building of new houses along with the conversion of villa’s 18,19 and 20 into flats.

Commercial centre

This is to be developed in the area adjacent to the boiler house and Honeysuckle Cottage. The developer has had discussions with Historic Scotland. They want to see as many existing buildings adapted and used if practicable. The developer envisages a mixture of converted and new buildings in this area.

Shop and cricket pavilion

The shop will be taken back to its original state. Its future use is still to be decided.

The cricket pavilion is in an extremely poor state of repair. If possible, it will be repaired. If this is not possible a suitable replacement will be provided.

The sports field will be made suitable for community use including by the school.

The primary school

This will be based in the recreation hall. Historic Scotland have been giving the developer advice on how it can be developed retaining as much of its character as possible. Children from Dechmont will be able to enrol at the school. It is due to open in 2026.

The church

Some maintenance such as gutter cleaning has taken place. It is being dried out and heating is to be installed.

A representative from Historic Churches has visited. They will take over responsibility in 2026.

I shall be visiting the site regularly and meeting with the on-site project manager to ensure that any concerns the DCC representing Dechmont residents have.

f you have any questions regarding the development, or to raise any issues please use the Dechmont Community Council email or attend the DCC meeting. This is held at 6pm on the last Wednesday of the month in the community centre. There is no meeting in December.

Jim Watson

Joint Planning Officer

Dechmont Community Council

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Bangour Redevelopment Update May 2022.

The dates below are approximate and will be updated when more definite dates are available.

Beginning of house construction.

House building is due to begin in March 2023. This will be done in phases.

Construction that will be audible to any housing will be carried out between the hours of 0800 and 1800 Monday to Friday and 0800 and 1300 on Saturday. No construction will be carried out on a Sunday.

The developers have agreed that access for exercise and dog walking can continue.

The Community Council will discuss safe access to the site with the developers asking for signposting to ensure the safety of people using the site.

The school

The new primary school is to be built adjacent to the recreation hall. The hall will be utilised by the school and possibly the community.

Historic Scotland are having discussions with the developers and the education department to give advice on the sympathetic use of the building.

The planned opening date for the school is August 2026.

New roundabout

A new roundabout is to be constructed on the A89 at the entrance to the development. A signalised Toucan crossing is to be installed to the east of the roundabout. This will enable safe access to the cycle/footpath adjacent to the A89.

The construction of this roundabout has been delayed as the developer had been having discussions with Scottish Water regarding the relocation of a water mains at the roundabout. This has been resolved although a commencement date has not been set yet.

Information regarding the redevelopment will be updated when updates are available.

Jim Watson

Joint Planning Officer

Dechmont Community Council

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BANGOUR VILLAGE UPDATE

6th NOVEMBER 2021

House building at Bangour is not likely to start soon, certainly not this year.

On the 3rd of March this year West Lothian Council agreed that planning permission in principle for Bangour should be granted subject to certain conditions being met.

The reasons building hasn’t started yet are related mainly to the conditions the developer has to fulfil as part of the conditions of the planning agreement.

Most of these conditions relate to the site but there are other conditions that affect Dechmont residents directly.

Before any residence can be occupied improvements have to be made to the Dechmont (Dobbies) roundabout.

Again, before any residence can be occupied a traffic calming strategy for Dechmont Main Street has to be submitted to the council.

Some, but not all of the requirements the developer has to submit include a phasing plan for the written approval of the council. This includes the delivery of public open space, roads and other infrastructure.

The developer has to submit plans for the listed buildings such as making them watertight etc.

They have to submit a woodland management plan. This includes future owner and management arrangements.

This is a summary of what was agreed to when construction begins:

998 tenancies will be built. 907 new build and 91 from the conversion of listed buildings.
There will be a primary school utilising the A listed recreation hall.
4 C listed buildings will be demolished. There will be partial demolition of the B listed nurses home.
11 listed buildings including the church and recreation hall will be retained
There will be a new roundabout at the entrance with a toucan crossing enabling access to the existing shared path on the A89.
There will be a bus service to the site which will initially be subsidised by the developer.
The church will become the responsibility of the Scottish Churches Trust.
There will be a network of paths within the development which will be accessible from the surrounding area including Dechmont. This includes the railway line leading to the core of the development where the primary school is situated.

When building does start construction shall only be carried out between 8am and 6pm Monday to Friday and until 1pm on Saturday. This includes deliveries.

Before any activity that may cause vibration such as pile driving this has to be submitted to the council for approval.

I’ll continue to update this information regularly although initially there will be little to report until the council have agreed to the submissions the developer has made to them.

Jim Watson

Dechmont Community Council

Minutes of Bangour Village subcommittee zoom meetings

2019

December 2019: Minutes