East Ayrshire Council / Comhairle Shiorrachd Àir an Ear

Happy Holidays from Mauchline CARS, our annual update!

East Ayrshire Council sent this bulletin at 20-12-2022 01:59 PM GMT

Welcome to our annual Mauchline CARS Christmas Newsletter.

Hello Mauchline Community, Friends & Partners,

It is hard to believe that we are nearly at the end of 2022. It has been a very busy and productive year behind the scenes for the Mauchline Conservation Area Regeneration Scheme (CARS).

Read on to find out what we have been able to progress this year as part of our project.

Wendy Corrigan

With a heavy heart we announce the incredibly sad news that Wendy Corrigan CF BSc (Arch) BArch (Hons) MSc Bldg Con (Distinction) RIBA RIAS IMaPS, Conservation Partner at Wylie Shanks our Conservation Accredited Architect passed away at the end of September.

We mourn the loss of our colleague and friend, and we pass our condolences to her family and all who were lucky enough to have known her.

Place Based Investment Programme (PBIP)

In collaboration with Mauchline Community Council (MCC) we submitted an application for grant support in delivering lighting improvements across Loudoun Street and the medieval lanes, and MCC applied for funds to support improvement works to benches in and around the village.

With our application being successful MCC began their improvements at the end of this year with some last benches due to be completed in spring 2023. Mauchline CARS are currently working with Ayrshire Roads Alliance (ARA) and our planned improvements are progressing, these also aim to be completed by spring 2023.

Conservation Area Management Plan (CAMP)

Great progress has been made throughout the year and we are happy to announce our Conservation Area Management Plan's final draft format is complete. We hope to present this to the Scottish Government in the New Year following a consultation period.

More information regarding the CAMP will be shared on our website.

Education & Learning

In April 2022 we collaborated with East Ayrshire Council's Creative Minds Team to compose a programme of educational projects aimed at both primary and secondary children in our community. These projects are currently being progressed to launch in 2023 and include;

A Mauchline Summer School
School Heritage Awareness Course
Interactive Town Trail

Find out more about our education programmes

Public Realm Improvements

As part of Mauchline CARS Aims & Objectives we plan to complete a series of improvements to areas of public realm within the Conservation Area.

These plans are currently at the early stages and still under consideration. The types of works possibly to be included would be;

improvements to surface materials,
improvements to street furniture, and
repair and restoration of historic fabric

Materials Audit

In 2021, Mauchline CARS and Wylie Shanks instructed the Scottish Lime Centre Trust to complete a Materials Audit of various buildings within Mauchline Conservation Area.

This audit will assist in assessing the appropriate materials for stone and mortar repairs to many of Mauchline's buildings currently being progressed for grant funding support.

Read more about our Materials Audit

Street signage

Recently we have held meetings with East Ayrshire colleagues to establish a scheme for the potential replacement of some of the modern street signs with ones of a more sympathetic style. We also plan on restoring some of the surviving original cast iron signs.

More details of this project will be shared with you all in the New Year.

Our Priority Buildings are specific properties with the Conservation Area which play a vital part in our village's heritage and the townscape.

These properties also have the potential of increased utilisation following Mauchline CARS funding.

Further information will be shared on properties progression in 2023.

Mauchline Colour Palette

Prime development in central Mauchline was from the mid-18th century to early 20th century, half of the Georgian period and all of the Victorian period. Due to the fashion at the time and the affordable paint pigments that were available the traditional Victorian colour palette was dark, with rich shades of maroon, red, burgundy, chestnut, dark greens, browns and blue.

Download our specially curated Mauchline Colour Palette (PDF 1.05Mb) to aid you in choosing an appropriate paint colour for your property and its features.

Mauchline Holy Fair

With the return of this historically important fair Mauchline CARS were happy to support by hosting a stall for the day. We also held a "Mini Artist" art competition and "Heritage Quiz". Prizes were supplied by Kays Curling Stone Factory, Woody's Ice Cream and Mossgiel Snug.

We are pleased to share that thanks to our fundraising efforts selling both the "Old Mauchline" and "Cumnock Cookbook", we raised £180.00 towards the DEC Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal.

Property maintenance evening

In June we held our first 'in-person' meeting since the pandemic - an evening of Property Maintenance, including the launch of our Property Maintenance and Management Plan (MAMP). A helpful guide for property owners to assist in effective and appropriate maintenance.

The evening included advice and helpful tips on property maintenance from Wendy Corrigan, Conservation Accredited Architect at Wylie Shanks and Duncan Edwards, roofing specialist from Tectorum Property. Mitchell Fotheringham from the Scottish Lime Centre Trust also attended and presented the findings from the Mauchline Conservation Area Materials Audit.

Mauchline Echo

In June following successful conversations with the Mauchline Echo, our local village magazine. We began hosting a regular feature, the aim for this is for us to share the progress of Mauchline CARS to as many in our community as possible. To date we have shared updates regarding our educational programmes, our Mauchline Colour Palette, funding and so much more.

Mauchline Business Association

An initial meeting was held with East Ayrshire Council representatives and local business owners to discuss the potential for a Mauchline Business Association. This resulted in the creation of a social media group where businesses can share ideas and events being held. Allowing owners to unite and succeed through shared goals.

#mauchlinecars

These days, there are so many different ways to stay connected with projects we care about.

Luckily, at Mauchline Conservation Area Regeneration Scheme, we won't make you choose!

Check us out across our different social media channels! You can also stay updated by joining our East Ayrshire Council StayConnected mailing list.

@mauchlinecars

@mauchline_cars

We hope you find the above information useful and if there is any aspect of Mauchline CARS that you would like to discuss further please do not hesitate to contact us.

Lastly we wish all our Community, Friends and Partners a Happy Holidays and Joyful New Year.

Yours sincerely,