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East Kilbride (Scottish Gaelic: Cille Bhrìghde an Ear) is the largest town in the South Lanarkshire council area. It is also designated as Scotland’s first new town on 6 May 1947. The area lies on high ground on the south side of the Cathkin Braes, about 9 miles (14 km) southeast of Glasgow and close to the boundary with East Renfrewshire.
The town is enclosed by the White Cart River to the west and the Rotten Calder to the east, the latter flowing northwards to join the River Clyde near Cambuslang. This area was previously the site of the small and historic village of East Kilbride, prior to its post-war development. The modern settlement serves both as a dormitory town for the city of Glasgow and maintains its own commercial centre.
The town centre is occupied by a large shopping centre comprising 6 linked malls, developed in phases. The malls are known by local residents as “The Centre”. The six malls are The Plaza (development started in 1972), Princes Mall (1984), Olympia (1988), Southgate (1989), Princes Square (1997) and Centre West (2003). The shopping centre has come under recent criticism for losing major retail chains in light of rising rental prices. This coupled with the Centre West expansion and decreasing shopper numbers has allowed swathes of properties within the centre to remain closed for months at a time, notably on the first floor of Centre West and the Plaza.
A £400m redevelopment of East Kilbride town centre was approved in 2006 by South Lanarkshire Council. The plan proposed demolishing some existing buildings to create a new civic centre, health centre, library and shopping facilities. It would also see a “landmark” arts and culture complex with a 1,000-seat theatre, a 500-seat conference centre, a museum and a new town square. However the project has been indefinitely delayed.
