Tenants at Glasgow's Trongate 103 cultural hub are protesting what they call "unsustainable" rent and service charge increases imposed by City Property, an arm's-length organization managing buildings for Glasgow City Council. Organizations like Transmission Gallery, Street Level Photography, and Glasgow Print Studio face potential displacement after receiving notices to quit or demands for significant cost hikes, with one group citing a £700,000 annual increase.
The dispute highlights a broader crisis in affordable cultural space and the accountability of public property managers. Critics describe City Property as a "rogue agency" imposing similar pressures on vulnerable charities and social care providers across the city, risking the dismantling of a vital, publicly-funded arts ecosystem and raising questions about the duty of public value for publicly-owned assets.