The 60-page document, known as the draft Cupar conservation area appraisal and management plan, will be on view in Cupar Library from Monday, February 15, and the public are to be given the chance to have their say on its findings.

The appraisal focuses on the centre of Cupar — parts of which date back to medieval times — which is designated as a conservation area.

It says that a number of the listed buildings are now on the Scottish Civic Trust's 'Buildings at Risk Register' because they are derelict or poorly maintained; that many of the town's pends and closes are 'run-down and uninviting' and that Cupar's medieval streetscapes have been destroyed by 'intrusive, untidy' car parks.

The area behind Crossgate is now a 'chaotic mix' of buildings and car parks, and visitors entering from the east are faced with an unattractive image of Cupar because of unsightly buildings and garages.

Gravestones in town centre graveyards have been knocked over, giving a poor impression to visitors and tourists; the Cart Haugh park is heavily waterlogged and landmarks such as the Crichton statue on the South Road Bridge are in poor condition due to a lack of maintenance and weather damage.

The report goes on to say that while most recent new developments are successful, those built from the 1950s to the 1980s tend to detract from the traditional character of the conservation area and lack of maintenance only adds to their unsightliness.

It is particularly critical of the redevelopment of Crossgate House in Crossgate, which it says appears to have been the victim of 'façadism', generally considered to be an unacceptable alteration of the fabric of a building.

Other issues highlighted as having an adverse effect on the town centre include the volume of traffic, which creates noise and pollution, and the 'inappropriate' shop fronts and signage on a number of businesses.

A £1.6 million project involving the demolition of the former ATS building in East Burnside and the relocation of traffic lights is due to get under way later this year and should go some way towards revitalising the town centre, but the document also identifies other opportunities for improvement within the conservation area, including enhancing shopfronts; developing brownfield sites and sympathetically restoring redundant historic buildings.