Aberdeen will not name any new-build projects after Queen Elizabeth II – at least, not yet.
City chiefs had suggested five options to be named in tribute to the late monarch, who ruled for 70 years.
She died at her beloved Balmoral Castle in September 2022.
Her Aberdeenshire holiday residence was a base for so many royal visits in the north-east during her reign.
What might Aberdeen have named after Queen Elizabeth II?
And, after previously resisting calls to rename the revamped Union Terrace Gardens after Queen Elizabeth II, councillors were once again faced with a choice on how best to remember her.
Officials brought forward five projects, all aimed at the city’s youth, that might have fit the bill.
Councillors were presented with the replacement Hazlehead Academy, the new £1m playpark at Hazlehead Park, the Aberdeen beach urban park or new primaries in Tillydrone and Newhills.
The city finance committee also could have chosen any of the other capital projects on the city’s books, thereby meaning even a controversial low emissions zone could be given a touch of regal splendour.
Nothing ‘suitable’ for Queen tribute
But in the end, they chose not to name anything after Queen Elizabeth II at this time.
The finance committee unanimously agreed there were “no suitable projects” on the council books.
They agreed to keep the naming of future projects under review.
Aberdeen City Council’s projects will be looked at on a yearly basis to see if any are worthy of being named after Queen Elizabeth II.
Were councillors right to wait for a project befitting a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II?
Let us know in the comments below.
And YOU can have your say
Councillors also agreed the public should be consulted on any option for a possible tribute, before a final decision is made.
It comes amid bubbling anger in Tillydrone.
Parents of Riverbank School pupils were unaware of the possible renaming before reading the news in The P&J and Evening Express.
A Press and Journal survey found 41% of our readers polled were against naming a big-money Aberdeen project after Queen Elizabeth II.
Another 29% were for remembering the Queen at the planned urban park at Aberdeen beach.
You can watch the discussion, minus the prolonged negotiations, here.
King Charles allowed to buy rusty old gates from Union Terrace Gardens
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