Access All Areas September 2018 | Page 43

FENCING & BARRIERS SEPTEMBER | SECTOR FOCUS Fencing and barriers have been met with mixed reactions, but they remain a vital part of event’s infrastructure REMOVAL DEMAND The leader of Edinburgh city council has ordered the removal of temporary fencing from Princes Street Gardens installed for a series of rock concerts. Residents have claimed that public spaces have been “blacked out and blocked off” by greedy promoters. Adam McVey, the SNP leader of Edinburgh’s ruling coalition, agreed and said that the barriers should not be put up “to the detriment of the city”. The fencing effectively creates a private arena in the public garden for the concerts which culminate in a performance of the Pet Sounds album and other Beach Boys material, by Brian Wilson. In a polemic, circulated on Twitter, the online journal Bella Caledonia said the situation was a mark of “over-tourism . . . where a place becomes so saturated with visitors… BARRIER BOOST NEEDED The Lincoln Festival of Cycling is under threat as event organisers plea for more private sponsors to help secure its future. The annual four-day event usually takes place in May with four competitive events including the Lincoln Grand Prix, which is Britain’s oldest one-day cycling race. The festival, which is shown on Eurosport, costs approximately £60,000 to run and sponsorship packages start from £500. It also provides a £500,000 boost to the city’s economy, but there are already concerns about next year’s event. In 2018 the festival had to cancel the Criterium and Uphill Dash events due to not having enough budget to support them. Dan Ellmore, who is one of the festival’s organisers, said: “The Lincoln Festival of Cycling brings more than 10,000 people in to the city, so the more events we can provide, the more money both tourists and cyclists will 43