STIRLING has unveiled a £200million plan it hopes will transform Scotland's ancient capital into an "economic and cultural powerhouse".

 

The local authority's vision is to make the city a world-class centre of innovation and excellence for key sectors, a thriving cultural hub, and a vibrant and cosmopolitan place to live and work.

It includes a digital hub for seeding product development projects, a state-of-the-art business incubation centre, a new marketplace, a new civic centre and a new city parkland.

The plan is being drawn up by both the public and private sector and the Stirling City Commission, which was launched at the start of the year.

Johanna Boyd, council leader and chair of the Stirling City Commission, said: "Stirling is an incredible place with much to offer, but to flourish in an increasingly competitive global economic environment, we need to be bold and committed.

"This ambitious plan is designed to reposition Stirling as an economic and cultural powerhouse, building on our unique advantages, advancing investment opportunities and encouraging diversification and growth for the benefit of all our citizens and communities."

Also included are plans to "revitalise Stirling's cultural quarter to build on an already vibrant culture scene and be a hub for the arts and creative industries", creating a new marketplace and all-weather performance area to showcase the city's food and drink sector and using the new parkland in the shadow of Stirling Castle as a new gateway to the city to provide space for events, public art, leisure and recreation.

Stirling Council chief executive Stewart Carruth said the plan was a bold statement of ambition and was vital if the city is to compete with Scotland's other six cities.

He said: "Like cities around the world, Stirling is thinking about its future and how we can attract people and business to the area and create a vibrant and cosmopolitan city for everyone to enjoy.

"We are very lucky in Stirling. We may be a small city but we have a great location, we are really well connected, and we have a wonderful tradition of heritage. Our challenge is to bring all of that together, contemporise it and modernise it, and the city development framework is an important step to making that happen."

Professor Gerry McCormac, principal of the University of Stirling and a key member of the Stirling City Commission, said: "As a centre of innovation and excellence, the University of Stirling is looking forward to working with the council to develop this ambitious plan to drive economic growth and revitalise Stirling as a world-class, dynamic and enterprising city."