People power wanted to revitalise Aberdeen's Union Street

Union Street has dozens of empty shops

A new working group has been set up aimed at transforming Aberdeen's Union Street - with the views of people as its focus.

Union Street runs through the heart of the Granite City and was once its flagship retail zone.

However, like many other high streets across Scotland, shops have been closing and units are lying empty.

The Our Union Street initiative will allow residents and businesses to share their thoughts on its future.

The project has been set up by Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce, Aberdeen Inspired, Aberdeen City Council and Opportunity North East.

The idea to create a single body to focus on the regeneration of Union Street was raised at an emergency summit in November last year.

The group said it aims to fill 47 empty units, and will shortly be launching a nationwide hunt for new businesses.

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It is being led by local businessman Bob Keiller, a former chairman of Scottish Enterprise who was also chief executive of Wood Group.

"Somebody needs to start the process and I think that is what this is about," he told BBC Scotland.

"I think it's about a community. I think it's about pulling people together to work collectively.

"I've lived in Aberdeen since the middle of the 1980s. My children have grown up here. I've known Union Street through different stages of its development and more recently some of the problems its faced."

Bob Keiller said people care about Union Street

He said that like most high streets across the UK and beyond there was a "huge challenge".

'Listen to people'

Mr Keiller explained: "People's buying habits have changed, we shop a lot more online, we buy a lot more food that gets delivered to us rather than coming in to cafes and restaurants.

"All of that societal change has been accelerated by the Covid pandemic and that's led to things like lots of empty retail units.

"I think there's concern about the upkeep of what could be a fantastic street when you see things like chewing gum on the pavements, abandoned shops that look as though they're completely unloved, weeds growing out of buildings.

"There's a lot of small things that collectively bring the whole place down. Conversely, if you can address a lot of these small things then potentially you've got the ability to change the feel and look of the place."

Of the way forward, the businessman said: "We need to start by listening to people, not consulting. Consulting normally means 'I've got a plan, what do you think about it? Give me a yes or no'.

"What I'm saying is 'I don't have a plan, I don't have the answers'. In fact, I probably don't even have all of the questions.

"We're starting by asking people what they want rather than telling them what they should have."