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Carbuncle winners to be announced Carbuncle 'crown' for Coatbridge
(about 9 hours later)
The winners of the less-than-coveted Carbuncle awards are to be announced later on Monday. Coatbridge town centre in North Lanarkshire is Scotland's most dismal place according to the Carbuncle awards.
The awards are handed out by the Prospect architecture magazine to Scotland's worst buildings, towns and planning disasters. The less-than-coveted title is one of three handed out by the Prospect architecture magazine.
The west of Scotland dominates the short-list for the Plook on the Plinth Award for most dismal town. The casino at Glasgow¹s Springfield Quay got the award for worst building and Pollock's Silverburn Centre was voted worst planning decision.
The final six include Springfield Quay and Oatlands in Glasgow, Coatbridge and Cumbernauld town centres, and Cumnock. Coatbridge is the third town in North Lanarkshire to be labelled a Carbuncle.
The list is completed by Granton Harbour in Edinburgh. Nearby Cumbernauld has won the infamous "Plook on the Plinth" prize twice. Neighbouring Airdrie has also been honoured in the past.
Other titles to be handed out include the Zit Award for most disappointing building, which has previously been won by The Pinnacle on St Vincent Street in Glasgow, and the Pock Mark Award for worst planning decision. Members of the public put forward their nominations for each category earlier this month, from which a panel of judges drew up a shortlist.
The Carbuncles, which are voted for by the public, began in 2000 as a means to stimulate debate and opinion on the standard of planning and development in Scotland's towns and cities. The final winners have been selected by a public vote.
Whilst it is legitimate to celebrate what is going right, it is also important to examine when things have gone wrong Penny LewisProspect editor Prospect editor Penny Lewis said: "Coatbridge could be a great place, it has a proud history and plenty of people living close to its centre.
Prospect editor Penny Lewis said: "Politicians, developers, media, the voluntary sector and the public at large are all responsible for ensuring we live in a high quality environment and the Carbuncles are seen as a light-hearted way of drawing attention to this by highlighting the failures in Scotland." "However, poor planning decisions and uninspiring urban design and architecture has destroyed the character of the place."
Publisher Gordon Young added:: "The Carbuncles serve as an antidote to self-congratulatory architectural award schemes - such as the Stirling Prize. Whilst it is legitimate to celebrate what is going right, it is also important to examine when things have gone wrong. 'Publicity stunt'
"The Carbuncles serve as an architectural equivalent of an air crash investigation team or CSI - enquiring why building projects have failed and attempting to understand what can be done to prevent the same thing happening in the future." Elaine Smith, MSP for Coatbridge and Chryston, told the BBC Scotland news website that the award was an "insult to the good people of the town".
The organisers said it was notable that past winners such as Airdrie and Cumbernauld had since put more emphasis on improving their town centres. She said: "I think the Carbuncle awards are particularly unhelpful for towns like Coatbridge that have risen from the ashes of their industrial past and really improved themselves.
"The people of Coatbridge are extremely friendly and proud of their industrial heritage and have worked hard to make the town a good place to live."
The local politician also had a message for those behind the Carbuncle awards.
She said: "This is nothing more than a patronising publicity stunt. Those at Prospect magazine should get out of the ivory tower and come and tour my Coatbridge and see it's a great place."