A celebration of people bringing positive change to Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire
COMMUNITY PROJECTS
Keep in touch with the projects that are being carried out in your community
The Skene Street Project
Bringing an apocalyptic neighbourhood back to life
Aberdeen has many beautiful landmarks, vibrant streets and green spaces but some areas have been abandoned and are feared to go into despair. The Skene Street playground, with its aging equipment and dangerous accessibility, was about to face this fate if it hadn’t been for the help of the community. Dusty Macdonald is part of the Skene Street Project, which aims to give another life to the playground in order to create a space where the local community would come together.
Dusty Macdonald works for the Aberdeen Community Council and, not living too far from the Skene Street play area, decided to revive his neighbourhood by revitalising the decaying space. The Aberdeen Community Council organises online crowdfunding to raise money for constructions and also works with the Aberdeen City Council to get staff to maintain the playground or get new equipment.
The first step of the project was to create a pathway surrounded by grass to create a green space in this concrete desert. The next idea was very simple but something that was drastically missing to the playground: benches for the parents to have somewhere to sit while watching their children play.
Some other plans include an outdoor gym, a climbing wall and a bigger seating area for people to just relax or share some lunch. Dusty worked with local architects George Watt & Stewart to build plans of the future park could look like
Dusty Macdonald works for the Aberdeen Community Council and, not living too far from the Skene Street play area, decided to revive his neighbourhood by revitalising the decaying space. The Aberdeen Community Council organises online crowdfunding to raise money for constructions and also works with the Aberdeen City Council to get staff to maintain the playground or get new equipment.
Photo article created from an interview with Dusty Macdonald. Images and text by Clara Maurillon.