Kirkcaldy Guardian: how one man is creating spaces to walk, talk and connect ...

Originally from Bathgate, he moved to Kirkcaldy in 2024 for love, but his connection to the Kingdom stretches back decades, with childhood holidays in Cellardyke and early career days spent training in Cupar’s planning department.

“I was about 20,” he recalls. “I stayed in Cupar for a few months during my town planning degree and yes, I remember the nightlife at Jackie O.”

With a career spanning 27 years in local government as a town planner, followed by five years in housing strategy and development, Colin understands communities differently.

“For me, it’s never just about buildings,” he said. “It’s about what happens inside them.”

That perspective has stayed with him from planning developments for up to 3500 homes, benefiting thousands of residents, to his current work in property investment.

“I see something here,” he says of Kirkcaldy. “A sense that this town still has so much to give.”

And quietly, steadily, Colin has become part of that story.

As former interim chair of Love Oor Lang Toun, he gained a deeper understanding of the regeneration challenges in the town centre and connected with many inspiring people working hard to drive positive change.

That belief in connection runs through everything he does. It’s there in Lang Toun Walks, his guided walks through Kirkcaldy, inspired in part by his younger years climbing Munros.

“When people walk together, they talk,” he said, “and they start to see the town again.”

The next walk, on May 24, will mark the 10th anniversary of local walker Alex Donald’s 17-mile circular route around the Lang Toun bringing people together not just physically, but collectively.

It’s also there in the Kirkcaldy Property Network, which Colin launched in early 2026 after chairing similar groups in Dunfermline.

What began as a simple idea quickly grew. At its first meeting, more than 30 people attended not just to listen, but to contribute.

“I wanted to create a space where people involved in property locally could connect, collaborate, and support each other,” he says. “The response has shown there’s a real appetite for that.”

Attendees have included professionals from across the sector including planning officers from East Ayrshire which has also received £20m government funding, reflecting a growing momentum around shared thinking and investment.

Colin is also a trustee of Fife Historic Buildings Trust, where he is part of wider conversations about how long-standing, often overlooked buildings can be brought back into use.

“There are spaces here that could mean something again,” he says. “If we use the £20 million well, we can make it £100 million. That’s the opportunity.”

Across Kirkcaldy, there are signs of that shift. Small but meaningful changes from the Kirkcaldy Lottery vinyls on the High Street to new conversations forming between groups who may never have connected before.

“It’s easy to focus on what’s not working,” Colin says. “Empty shops, changing habits but there’s also so much being invested. Not just money, but time, energy, and people.”

He points to the strength of partnership working across the town often happening quietly, but with lasting impact.

“Partnership is key. There are conversations happening now where people genuinely want to work together.”

For Colin, this is where the real story lies. Kirkcaldy is not finished. It is, in many ways, beginning again – and people like Colin who create spaces, who bring others with them are part of that change.

His message is simple.

“Get involved. Volunteer. Show up and be part of it.”

As Colin sees it, Kirkcaldy isn’t something that happens to us. It’s something we make. Together.