Council boss fails to take up invite

A senior officer at Falkirk Council has declined an invitation from Bo’ness Community Council to attend its January meeting.
The Community Council had invited Malcolm Bennie, Falkirk Council’s director of place services, to come to its monthly meeting to discuss the Council’s property review.
Falkirk Council is consulting on the future of more than 100 community buildings - with the option of closing buildings or transferring them to the community. Under discussion are properties such as Bo’ness Town Hall and Bo’ness Recreation Centre (pictured).
The response to Community Council chair Madelene Hunt is published below.
Dear Madelene,
Thank you for your email and invitation, and I am sorry to hear you are disappointed by the level of consultation being undertaken.
The Strategic Property Review is being led by Paul Kettrick, Head of Invest Falkirk. He is in the process of arranging a number of public meetings to discuss this activity across the Falkirk area in January – including Bo’ness. I think his capacity to attend additional meetings during this period will be understandably limited so I would be keen to encourage the Community Council representatives to come to one of these meetings. These meetings will also be the best vehicle for capturing the feedback of local residents and groups as a wider community engagement team will be present to record comments consistently etc.
The dates of the public engagement events will be shared in the new year and I’ll make sure that you receive direct notification to assist your planning.**
Merry Christmas to you too and best wishes for the year ahead.
Malcolm