What is Kirkcaldy’s unique selling point - and how do we find it?


I recall being at a meeting a few years ago when the question was pitched, and we were momentarily stumped. Defining ‘Kirkcaldy’ is difficult. For some it its the town’s industrial heritage, its shoreline location, its sporting greats and global pioneers, and for others it’s memories of the High Street when it was the finest in Fife.
But defining Kirkcaldy is key to the debate over its future direction. What exactly is the Lang Toun’s USP?
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Hide AdA post on Love Kirkcaldy following the closure of Society nightclub in Charlotte Street prompted a host of great ideas - inspired, imaginative and all capable of transforming the perceptions that hang like a dark cloud over this town.
But, like so many debates and consultations, it was circular - a bit like watching a dog chasing its own tail.
I’ve sat on committees, attended seminars and been part of organisations that have been set up to re-set the town’s direction. If all the blueprints and masterplans written about our town were laid along the waterfront they’d stretch from Merchants’ Cafe to the Basin.
The town clearly needs a USP; a definitive reason to visit, spend, invest, stay, and socialise - something we have that you cannot see or experience anywhere else.
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Hide AdTake the red heart on the Esplanade. Public art only works when the public embrace it - and that’s exactly what has happened on the waterfront. A simple ideas well executed, so what else could we come up with to make it more than a one-off, and, would that take us close to a unique selling point? Does it give good reason to visit?
But we also need investment on a scale that simply isn’t there right now, and which Kirkcaldy has seen go elsewhere for far too long.
Dunfermline went for £5million of Levelling Up funding - where was Kirkcaldy’s compelling pitch? Our need is surely greater, and while the £300,000 community pot which we did get will help a number of projects it is - and I mean absolutely no disrespect - small change in comparison. And it’s the big picture stuff that holds the key to creating a new narrative for this town.
What are we getting from the City Region Deal that is meant to transform local economies and - crucially - deliver jobs? When it comes to ‘Fife-wide’ initiatives too often we seem to be down the pecking order and have been for too long.
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Hide AdBut, what is lost is gone for good. What comes next no-one seems too sure about. The debate on Facebook suggested we’ve been stuck at this crossroads for too long in my view.
The town centre’s pivot to the key pillars of residential, recreation and retail - probably in that order - feels it is only just beginning. We want a vibrant High Street but shop online. We want pubs, clubs and restaurants but opt for Dominos pizza and JustEat deliveries. We have a society that, post lockdown, is more isolated than ever - some economically, but there is a generational change which opts to connect online instead of going out.
And we won’t get the mass re-development that can be the catalyst for change until something actually happens at The Postings site, the Kitty’s site, the old pool site etc etc - how many years down the line will that be?
So, the question at the heart of all the work going on right now remains - what is Kirkcaldy for?
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