East Ayrshire Council / Comhairle Shiorrachd Àir an Ear

Mauchline CARS Autumn update

East Ayrshire Council sent this bulletin at 01-10-2024 01:36 PM BST

Mauchline CARS Autumn Update

Dear Mauchline community, friends and partners,

We would like to welcome you to our Autumn Update Newsletter, read on for an overview of all Mauchline CARS' progress to date this year.

Additional funding secured.

mauchline cars mauchline in bloom planter

In collaboration with Mauchline Community Council we recently submitted a bid for additional funding from the Renewable Energy Fund.

The funds are planned to support the manufacture and install of some additional street furniture around the village.

We are very happy to share with you that we have been successful in our application allowing us to progress with this project. The works planned include;

New benches at the side of the Fairburn Hotel, with the current bench being relocated to the rear of the carpark,
New bench at Poosie Nansies and the Centre Stane
New planters at The Cross and the rear of Loudoun Street Carpark

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all parties involved and also to thank the Renewable Energy Fund in their support of our project.

Mauchline CARS Evaluation

Our newly appointed Evaluation Consultant David Smart from Smart Consultancy has completed an initial Interim Review of Mauchline CARS to date.

This initial stage of our evaluation is a retrospective review of all progress made by Mauchline CARS thus far, David will support us throughout the remainder of time we have left in Mauchline and conclude in a final evaluation of our project.

An evaluation of our project is an agreed requirement between ourselves at Mauchline CARS and our key funders Historic Environment Scotland. This ensures that we constantly review our processes and aim to improve from all lessons learned.

Mauchline CARS Office

Throughout the progression of Mauchline CARS we routinely review our financial position and where the best place to allocate our budget is.

Following the review of our initial evaluation report and discussions with our Mauchline CARS Steering Group we have decided to exit our current office at 15 Earl Grey Street.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank our landlord for their accommodation for the last few years and we wish them well in the future.

We will continue to host meetings in and around the village to support our local venues and businesses. we will vacate the office on Friday 4th October.

Contractors appointed for multiple applicants

mauchline cars applicant 1 colour option

Mauchline CARS 1 The Cross colour elevation

We are thrilled to share that we have now progressed multiple Mauchline CARS applicants to the stage of contractors being appointed. We have recently held pre-start meetings for a number of these applicants and are happy to share works are set to commence within the coming weeks.

During these works you will notice scaffolding being erected around the village, these structures may affect footpaths and in some occasions traffic flow or roads. During this time we apologise for any inconvenience caused and thank you all for your understanding.

If you see us on site please feel free to stop by and say "hello", we will be happy to update you on the project's status and anything else we are working on at this time.

Contractors appointed for Mauchline's first shop front restoration

Mauchline CARS 4 Loudoun St color proposal

Furthermore, we are pleased to share that one of our property owners have now progressed their application towards the reinstatement of a traditional shop front to the stage of appointing their contractor.

Again these works may impact public footpaths and/or traffic. Please bear with us during this exciting time, we cannot wait to reveal the newly restored properties across the village.

Traditional street signage

Stage one of a small aspect of our public realm improvement works was recently completed during the summer.

This consisted of new traditional styled street signs for the main thoroughfares within the historic core of our village.

Stage two will include replacement signage to the remaining properties following their restorative works as applicants of Mauchline CARS.

Would you like to join Mauchline CARS Steering Group?

A key factor into the successful operation and completion of any CARS is the voice and direction of the community.

Our Mauchline CARS Steering Group consists of members of our local community, some of whom also support other local groups.

As our project enters a new phase within its journey with the commencement of works to grant applicant's properties we would like to invite additional members to join our group.

As a member you are required to attend bi-monthly evening MS Teams meetings, during these meetings we share an update on the project to date, consult with our members on matters currently being reviewed and ask our members to share their views and feedback on any matters arising.

If you are interested in joining us please email our CARS inbox via the below link.

Express interest in joining Mauchline CARS Steering Group

Mauchline CARS Summer School 2024.

Due to the success of our last summer school in 2023, we were happy to support a second instalment in 2024.

This year the young people of Mauchline took part in Parkour, Dance and Music Making. Learning about their local heritage focused around the Ballochmyle Sandstone Quarry.

The Summer School was funded by Mauchline CARS and delivered by East Ayrshire Council's Creative Minds Team. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all involved, we hope the young people enjoyed the event and learned interesting facts about Mauchline's history.

See the photos from our Summer School

We hope you have enjoyed reading our latest update , please ensure you subscribe to our StayConnected mailing list and social media platforms to keep updated on all matters regarding Mauchline CARS.