39 RIAS Awards

The Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS) is a champion of Architecture and the Built Environment in Scotland. It supports the interests of its growing membership to promote the importance of well-designed buildings and places. With that in mind, it holds an annual challenge - to find the best examples across the country. As we'll hear, this year saw a record entry of 84 projects which have now been whittled down to a shortlist of 27. 

Interior of Portobello High School

And to prove that Porty is the best place to live, more buildings in Portobello and surrounds have been entered for the Awards than any other single part of the country. Leading the way is Porty High School - but there are other, smaller gems as well.

RIAS Awards 

38 Beach Arts

 I must go down to the seas again - and wonder what I might find washed up by the tide!  Beachcombing is a popular pastime for many people - but for Nicola McFarlane Young, it's more of a passion. 

Nicola McFarlane Young

 She describes herself as a "Driftwood Artist" - and a highly successful one at that. She's down on Portobello Beach almost every day, hunting not just for driftwood but also for interesting shells and other objects. 

Her business, Beach Arts, was established six years ago and her work can be found in galleries across the country. In this episode, we hear from Nicola about her art.

Beach Arts

37 Local Elections

It's that time again. The local elections are taking place on the 4th of May. Portobello is put together with Craigmillar which sends four members to the City of Edinburgh Council.

There are six candidates standing and usually they would have faced a town hall hustings in which they answered questions from the electorate. But that's not taking place this year - so we've organised an alternative using Facebook Live on Thursday the 27th of this month. So what does that involve?

Local Elections

36 Porty Parkrun

You may have heard of Parkruns. They are free, weekly, 5km timed runs which take place all around the world. The important thing is that they are family friendly, safe and easy to take part in. They started in England, in Bushy park, near Teddington, back in October 2004. 

The events take place in pleasant parkland surroundings and people of every ability are encouraged to take part; from those taking their first steps in running to Olympians; from juniors to those with more experience; all are welcome.

The Porty Parkrun - 2 Years Old Today

 Well, today was a special day for the Porty Parkrun. Over 300 people turned up to mark its second anniversary.  

Porty Parkrun's Anniversary 

35 Portobello Heritage Trust

Portobello has a long history. Originally, the area known as the Figgate Whins and the modern name reputedly comes from a cottage, built by a retired seaman, who named it after the famous Battle of Porto Bello. This took place  in 1739  in Panama between a British naval force and its Spanish defenders, part of the War of the Austrian Succession, sometimes known as the War of Jenkins' Ear.
 

The Historic Kilns of Portobello

However, the community which has grown up since then has a rich history  and Portobello Heritage Trust is dedicated to telling that story. The Trust was originally created with one project in mind - the rebuilding of the kilns near the beach. However, there's more to Porty's Heritage than that. However, even the story of the potteries is missing some elements as we heard at the AGM.

 Portobello Heritage Trust

34 Bellfield - The Result

A lot of local people have been on tenterhooks, waiting for the result of the Bellfield Ballot. It's been a first for Scotland, using new legislation to organise a community buy-out of a local resource - in this case, a redundant church. 

Bellfield Church -Now Owned by the Community

 A ballot of local residents was held - and the result was a resounding YES. All we need now is for the Scottish Government to agree!

Bellfield Result 

33 The Portobello Organic Market

The Porty Organic Market has been running for several years now.  It can be found in Brighton Park on the first Saturday of every month. There is often music played by a local group of musicians or singers. There's freshly cooked food - the filled tattie scones are excellent - and freshly brewed coffee.

Stalls at the Organic Market

Organised by PEDAL, it attracts a wide range of regular traders - and, this being the first market of the Spring, there was a healthy turnout. It's not just the purveyors of food and crafts who take stalls - we'll come back to them in a future episode. There are also campaigning organisations as well.

Porty Organic Market