CTLR Open Day Success
The Cross Tay Link Road project held its inaugural open day on 12th October, allowing 300 local people the opportunity to find out more about Perth & Kinross Council’s £150 million infrastructure project.
As well as providing guided tours of the project site and direct contact with engineers and sub- contractors, BAM Nuttall and PKC offered a fun, family event for children that included bird box painting, Amery Plant simulator, and a chance to meet spot the dog, a robotic dog fitted with in-built laser scanners.
The Lighthouse of Perth, a local non-profit service offering crisis support for anyone aged 12+ who is at risk of self-harm or suicide, benefited from fundraising on the day, which reached over £800. This amount will be added to the online Silent Auction currently running, to bring an expected total of £5000 for the charity.
Innes Mackintosh, Community Engagement Manager for BAM Nuttall at CTLR, commented, “We were delighted to see so many local residents join us in our first Open Day event. The feedback we received was incredibly positive with people from across the area interested in finding out more about the project.
“I’d like to thank everyone who came out to join in, and to give a big shout out to our subcontractors who have donated so generously to the online auction and on-the-day tombola in aid of The Lighthouse of Perth. Ensuring that CTLR leaves a meaningful legacy for local families is a key aim of the project and we are proud to be supporting such a worthwhile cause.”
Did you miss out?
Sign up for our Community Newsletter to make sure you stay up to date with Community Meetings, news and events.
The event also played host to The Heritage Hero Awards presented to students who participated in the excavation of Broxy Kennels Fort, the archaeological dig that took place between January 2022 and September 2022, ahead of earthworks commencing on the new road.
During the excavation, ten students from Perth College UHI joined the GUARD Archaeology dig team to experience working on a large infrastructure project and the chance for a ‘once in a lifetime’ excavation of a complete Iron Age fort.
Jillian Ferguson, Roads Infrastructure Manager for Perth & Kinross Council commented, “The Cross Tay Link Road project will have a significant impact on Perth and Surrounding area, both during construction and once completed. To have extended this to include the excavation of Broxy Kennels Fort, has been hugely exciting for the team and we are delighted to offer our congratulations to the volunteers receiving the Heritage Hero Awards.”
The Heritage Hero Awards were designed by Archaeology Scotland to recognise the achievements of volunteers investigating history, heritage, and archaeology in Scotland. The awards are designed to make cultural heritage accessible to all.
During the excavation of Broxy Kennels Fort, ten students from the University of the Highlands and Islands campus in Perth joined the GUARD Archaeology dig team to experience working on a large infrastructure project and the chance for a ‘once in a lifetime’ excavation of a complete Iron Age fort.
Several Open Days were also held during the course of the excavation to enable members of the public to see how the excavation was progressing.
These awards have been given to each of the students who participated in the dig. And also to one of the young people who visited the excavation during one of the Open Days. This experience led him to participating in other GUARD Archaeology excavations and then on to studying Archaeology at University now.
Maureen Kilpatrick of GUARD Archaeology commented, ‘This was one of the largest excavations of a fort of this period in a generation. Not only will the evidence we gathered reveal new insights into Iron Age Scotland, but these awards testify to how the excavation is enabling the next generation of archaeologists to develop their skills to investigate more of Scotland’s archaeology in the future.’