Last year, I highlighted the excellent proposal by local resident Kelly Marr for "Discovery Walk" in the new Waterfront area, a series of manhole covers that would depict some of the great Dundonians who have made a real contribution to the city in the field of discovery. The concept is based around the Sydney Writers' Walk – here’s me (below) at the Writers' Walk in Sydney :
There has been progress with regard to the project with aims and objectives having been produced (to quote) :
• To publicly acknowledge the numerous contributions that the city of Dundee has made in a range areas (not simply literary figures like the “Writer’s Walk” in Circular Quay Sydney).
• To educate the public on perhaps the lesser known but extremely valuable discoveries that can be traced to Dundee. This is a concerted effort to step away from the “Jute, Jam and Journalism” that Dundee is already famous for and celebrate the more recent developments in the areas of medicine and academia that are often overlooked.
• To have the facility to download an app that can provide a greater context on the individual being acknowledge in each manhole cover, that in the longer term can be linked with other projects and attractions in other parts of Dundee, (for instance, Admiral Duncan could be linked with Camperdown House).
There are several advantages to the installation of personalised manhole covers as opposed to other forms public tributes :
• As demonstrated by the examples in this proposal, the ground plaques can tastefully work with a variety of pavement designs and therefore successfully link the new developments on Dundee’s waterfront with pavements that have already been established.
• From a future planning point of view it simply requires the installation of the plaques in place of manhole covers which from an historical point of view acknowledge the history of the waterfront.
• When there is an addition made to Discovery Walk it can be an excellent PR opportunity and help sustain a greater awareness of contributions and developments that are taking place in the city.
Do please contact me if you wish further details of this excellent initiative.