A mural of Billy Connolly is about to be wiped out by a development in the centre of Glasgow. Is the city getting it right, asks Mark Smith

I’m not entirely sure what the expression on Billy Connolly’s face is, but he doesn’t look happy. The mural on Osborne Street in Glasgow was a tribute from his home town but now the diggers and the cranes and the guys in hard hats have moved in and it won’t be long before the mural’s covered up for good, blotted out, erased. Perhaps the expression on Billy’s face is resignation. What can you do eh?

The council insists it’s no big deal, the mural was never meant to be permanent anyways, and besides, they don’t want it to stand in the way of one of the few sectors that seems to be bringing cash into the city centre. Yes: the site in front of the Big Yin’s sightly annoyed face is being cleared for student flats. Ten stories, 273 beds, 40m quid, with the first students moving in next summer. I stood and watched the builders working on it and they’re fairly cracking on.

In some ways, it’s fine and it feels a bit petty to pick holes in the project: more people living in this corner of Glasgow is a good idea; it has heaps of potential and some of the best places in the city (Rose & Grants for rolls and coffee, Mono for burgers and chips, Mr Ben for shirts and jackets). But parts of it are tired: the windows are empty, the paint is peeling, and an acre or more is a ramshackle car park. Speak to the residents as well and they’ll tell you the challenges: crime, litter, graffiti, drugs, all the close relatives of neglect. It’s fair to say the area could do with a boost.

To be fair, the student high-rises that are popping up,........

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