Businesses call for a clean-up

Nov 14 2012 by Nicola Findlay, East Kilbride News

Business owners in Greenhills Square are calling for a major clean-up of the area.

They say the square, particularly after the weekend, is a disgrace as the ground is littered with rubbish and even dog dirt.

And Councillor Jim Docherty is backing their calls.

Manager of Greenhills Pub, David Trainer, told the News: “The place looks unsightly and is a mess.

“I had to come out and sweep up outside the pub myself one day.

“It doesn’t create the best first impression.

“The bins are overflowing, although I am not sure there are enough in the square.

“If there isn’t a bin nearby people are just dropping their litter on the ground.”

And owner of Red Head Hairdressers, Heather Thomson, said: “The whole place is a disaster.

“On Sunday morning there were papers and Buckfast bottles strewn around.

“I have been here many years and there has definitely been a decline, but I think that’s the same for East Kilbride as a whole.

“The problem is we no longer have a security office here and we need someone about for more than a couple of hours a day, which is what we have at the moment.”

Councillor Docherty has called on the owners of the centre to be made to rectify the situation, which he has branded unacceptable.

He said: “I visited the square on Saturday and Sunday and it was disgusting.

“There was dog dirt on the pathway and foodstuff lying on the pavement outside the shops.

“The bins provided were overflowing with rubbish. It was shocking. The front door to the centre has been boarded up for weeks and looks terrible. There was also broken glasses lying outside the front door of the pub and the cigarette ends were in the hundreds.

“This situation cannot be allowed to continue and we must make the owners of the centre fulfil their obligations to the shopkeepers who rent the shops, not forgetting the public who shop there.”

A council spokesman said: “Greenhills Shopping Centre is not an area that is maintained by the council.

“Environmental services has been liaising with the owners of the shopping centre in respect of the frequency and effectiveness of litter clearing in the area.

“Currently, litter clearing is undertaken six days per week and environmental services may suggest increasing the frequency if necessary.

“Environmental services will be monitoring this area and will arrange litter control patrols if littering persists.”