Mackenzie Construction Supports Community and Culture at Woodside
Mackenzie Construction is proud to be part of the 56-week Woodside Making Places Project, a £4m improvement project that transformed the public spaces around the Cedar high-rise flats at St George’s Cross. The transformational environmental works involve improving the streets, green spaces, play parks and courtyards of the area.
The project, delivered by the Queens Cross Housing Association and supported by additional funding from the Scottish Government, aims to create an “attractive”, multi-functional green infrastructure network with integrated cycle routes, biodiverse habitats, sustainable drainage, and vibrant doorstep play and allotment areas. The main focus is on improved pedestrian crossings, construction of new rain gardens, new paving, new trees and street lighting improvements, along with streetscaping, street furniture and new cycle stores.
As part of this project, an opportunity arose to support one of the new allotment sites at Woodside by donating a storage container. Though practical, the container had seen better days. The local community put their heads together, and thanks to their creativity, spirit, and collaboration, it quickly transformed into something extraordinary.
Working closely with local growers, a community artist, and the Community and Growing Spaces Coordinator at Queens Cross Housing, the container was reimagined as a canvas.
The vibrant mural that now wraps around the container honours the rich cultural and linguistic diversity of the neighbourhood by illustrating nature’s core elements — the sun, moon, and soil — in languages spoken by local residents: Arabic, Urdu, Punjabi, Hindi, Traditional Chinese, Scots, and Scottish Gaelic.
At Mackenzie Construction, we believe in building connections, opportunities, and strong communities within the areas we live and work. We recently received some positive feedback from a local resident at Woodside following the completion of Phase 1 of the project,
“I just wanted to say how nice the improvements to the local area in Woodside are, especially at the Cedar Court flats. Now there are open spaces, grassy areas, biodiversity, and it feels more like a community. Last weekend, my partner and I sat on the grass next to the allotment and bike storage instead of opting to go to Speirs Wharf, Kelvingrove Park or the Botanic Gardens, and it was wonderful. Every weekday after 3pm, the play equipment is full of kids and their parents, and you can tell that people are building relationships with those around them. This is really great work, so thank you to those involved.”
We’re incredibly proud to be supporting the Woodside Making Places Project, and this opportunity stands as a colourful tribute to the diversity of the Woodside community.