Born in 1946 and brought up in Cupar, Fife, I was educated at the local school - 
The Minister was speaking as he announced details of successful applications to the Station Community Regeneration Fund - a £1 million pot of money to help create new businesses and premises for local projects.
Five projects across the Scottish rail network have successfully secured funding from the scheme including a heritage centre at Cupar and a charity shop at Kilmarnock.
Mr Stevenson said:
"The Stations Community Regeneration Fund is an excellent example of how communities are benefitting from the ScotRail Franchise.
"By re-investing in the station environment and bringing redundant buildings back to life, we are opening up new employment opportunities while communities benefit through the creation of new local facilities.
“These five projects are ideal examples of the type of investment we can offer as we re-open the scheme to the next round of applications.”
Steve Montgomery, managing director of ScotRail said:
“We welcome these successful applications which open up new possibilities across Scotland and underpin our commitment to put stations at the heart of communities."
Launched by the Transport Minister 12 months ago, funding is available from Transport Scotland to contribute towards the costs of structural repairs and to match fund up to 50% of the costs of fitting out station premises for their intended use.
The next round of applications close in October 2010 and anyone seeking more information should contact ScotRail at SCRF@firstgroup.com or by telephone on 0845 601 5929.
The scheme is one of 28 initiatives which will benefit from an investment fund of more than £70 million, managed by Transport Scotland, which has been created to improve Scotland's railways.
| Station | Proposal Use | Agreed SCRF funding | Applicants Estimated Total Project Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cupar | Heritage Centre | £37K | £70K |
| Kilmarnock | Charity shop | £40K | £115K |
| Dundee | Headquarters for New Scottish Arts | £59.5K | £63K |
| Dumbarton Central | Café | £24k | £31K |
| Kinghorn | Artist studio | £7.5K | £15K |
