Dundee Council to Vote on Future of Tourist Attractions Next Week

Next week, councillors are scheduled to determine the future of three tourist attractions in Dundee. This decision is part of an initiative aimed at saving Leisure and Culture Dundee over £400,000 annually. Following a public consultation conducted earlier this year, councillors will cast votes on whether to close Broughty Castle Museum and Caird Park Golf Course. Mills Observatory, which had also faced potential closure, is proposed to stay operational after successfully obtaining additional funding. According to a report presented to councillors, each round played at Caird Park Golf Course receives a subsidy of £9.10 from Dundee taxpayers. The closure of Caird Park Golf Course has the potential to provide £335,000 annually towards addressing Leisure and Culture Dundee’s (LACD) budget deficit. The public consultation process took place over a six-week period earlier this year. Should the proposals be approved, Broughty Castle Museum is slated to cease operations next October, and Caird Park Golf Course would close by the end of April. The report indicated that visitor figures for Broughty Castle Museum in 2023/24 stood at 39,223, representing a decrease from 43,149 visitors in 2019/20. Discontinuing services at the museum would result in annual savings of £80,000 for LACD, and returning the property to its owner, Historic Environment Scotland, would save the council £30,000 per year in property-related expenses. LACD stated that £95,000 for the observatory would be sourced from a combination of private funds and trusts over the forthcoming three to five years. Additionally, councillors are expected to consider on Monday a request to approve up to £15,000 in annual funding, subject to review in three years, as part of the overall plan to maintain services at the observatory. Mark Flynn, who serves as Dundee City Council’s city governance committee convener, reported that nearly 2,500 individuals participated in the consultation. He commented: “The decision to stop delivering any services in the city is not something that is done lightly, and all reasonable suggestions have been explored, but these recommendations show just how challenging the financial position is as work goes into balancing the books for the next financial year.“ He added, “As part of the consultation process, external funding has been identified for the observatory, and I would encourage people across the city to make good use of it during these darker winter nights.”