Aberdeen Christmas festivities programme taking shape
14/09/06
Festive Aberdeen 2006 is shaping up to be a feast of entertainment.
The council’s resources management committee has approved the outline programme – and the City Events team is now finalising details of the attractions and activities.
Some £665,000 has been set aside for the programme, matching last year’s budget. The £30,000 which will be saved by not staging the ice rink this year will allow extra money to be invested in other activities, like bringing more street entertainers and musicians to city stores to attract shoppers.
Committee convener Councillor Neil Fletcher said: “I think this is going to be one of the best Christmases we have had.”
The emphasis this year is on laying on attractions to draw as many people as possible into the city centre.
Lined up so far are:
* November 19: the big Christmas lights switch-on, taking the form of a parade along Union Street with the Lord Provost, Notting Hill Carnival-style characters and musical entertainments, and the lights coming on as the parade passes by;
* December 1-17: German Christmas Market in the Castlegate; a UK-first for Aberdeen and set to be one of the few markets in Britain selling traditional German fare; it will also feature funfair rides;
* December 3: Castlegate Christmas Tree switch-on, in conjunction with religious groups, UNICEF and a choir from Stavanger; the tree is being donated by the people of Stavanger;
* December 3: His Majesty’s Theatre Son et Lumiere; the theatre was planning a smaller-scale floodlighting event to mark its centenary on this date but now the City Events team is joining in to boost its scale and include the switch-on of the Union Terrace Gardens lighting and the illumination of another Christmas tree in the gardens;
* December 23: traditional carol concert in the Winter Gardens, including a brass band and choirs;
* various dates: walking trails from Provost Skene’s House, with costumed actors and stories from the past;
* December weekends: the return of the Road Train to Union Street after last year’s big success for the ride.
Union Street will not be closed on any December weekend this year because roadworks on Market Street will still be continuing in the run-up to Christmas.
Councillor Fletcher said: “Closing Union Street would have a considerable effect on transportation in our city. “
Council officers reported to the committee that the high volume of traffic requiring access to the city centre at this time of year needs as clear a drive-through as possible. The council has also received complaints from the public that closing Union Street during weekends in the run-up to Christmas has put bus stops out of action and made catching a taxi more difficult, at a time when easy access to public transport is very important.
The ice rink has been dropped because it cost the council £30,000 last year to stage it for just 1,000 users over the festive period – amounting to a subsidy of £30 per person.
The money for this year’s programme is coming from the City Growth Fund (£275,000), the city council (£211,000) and the Common Good Fund (£178,500).
