IT is the prize everyone wants, a flipside to the Carbuncle awards, which celebrates the best of Scotlands's urban landscape.
And the search for Scotland's Most Beautiful High Street which has entered its third year, comes with heartening signs town centres are making a comeback.
The Carbuncles that named and shamed the country's worst architecture for almost two decades, with its infamous Plook on the Plinth prize was scrapped in 2017.
That was the same year that Forres took the first ever Most Beautiful High Street title.
The third national competition has been launched by environmental charity Keep Scotland Beautiful and Scotland’s Towns Partnership with the winner to be chosen by a public vote.
Travel video of Forres.
It comes as the Scotland's Towns Partnership said that despite economic challenges, town centres are reinventing themselves.
READ MORE: Rab McNeil: Let's get back to having a high old time in our town centres
This has been helped with the carrot of a £50 million fund developed by the Scottish Government to help boost struggling town centres.
The largest beneficiary in the March allocation was Fife Council, which was receiving £4.3m. Aberdeenshire was allocated £3.3m, with £3m going to Glasgow and £2.6m to Edinburgh.
The smallest allocation - £660,000 - was awarded to Inverclyde.
Phil Prentice, chief officer of the Scotland’s Towns Partnership, said: “Our high streets and town centres are the beating hearts of communities and local economies, and each has its unique identity and experience to offer for both residents and visitors. We want to celebrate the contribution of our high streets and recognise the efforts made to make these spaces clean, attractive, accessible, vibrant and inclusive for all to enjoy.
“Although some of our high streets have faced challenges in light of the growth of online retail, the spirit of reinvention is very much alive.
"Some towns have totally reinvented – Wigtown as the Book Town, West Kilbride as the Craft Town, Kirkcudbright as the Art Town, Oban for Seafood, Dunoon and Fort William as outdoor leisure specialists.
"Towns like Inverurie, Prestwick, Gourock and Kilmalcolm are all beginning to see a strong rise in the growth of independent and high quality local niche retail.”
Turriff became Scotland's jewel in the crown after coming victorious last year having been on a shortlist that included Cupar, Denny, Inverurie, Jedburgh and Linlithgow.
Shortlisting judges are said to have previously taken a broad approach to the word ‘beautiful’, focusing on factors such as horticultural achievement, public realm, environmental responsibility, access, inclusivity and community participation.
The winning entry, submitted by Turriff Business Association, highlighted the town’s numerous heritage sites, horticultural beauty and community initiatives, including the iconic Turra Coo.
Marj Chalmers, chairman of 2018 winners Turriff Business Association, encouraged towns to get involved, stating: “Entering and winning the title of Scotland's Most Beautiful High Street last year was a great honour for us. Winning overall was fantastic and a great boost for Turriff. I would encourage anybody to take part as it greatly benefited us.
READ MORE: Michael Matheson: fundamental re-think of Scots town centres vital to pollution battle
“We had lots of press coverage and also television news coverage The footfall was increased greatly and it certainly put Turriff on the map with the businesses in Turriff benefiting from the extra trade.
“The award that I and my colleague Rose Logan collected from the Parliament building in Edinburgh was proudly displayed around Turriff in members premises a week at a time and finally now has pride of place in our library.
"It was fantastic we won and was a big thank you to all the groups involved that keep Turriff spotless and beautiful with hanging baskets and litter collection ”.
In 2017,Urban Realm magazine, the organisers of the Carbuncles felt it was no longer appropriate to single out struggling communities at a time of continuing austerity and economic uncertainty.
Cumbernauld in North Lanarkshire had the dubious distinction of winning the Plook on the Plinth title for having Scotland's "most dismal" town centre in 2001 and 2005.
The Most Beautiful High Street organisers feel their awards are valuable for accentuating the positives.
Derek Robertson, chief executive at Keep Scotland Beautiful, added:“We know that good quality environments are good for business and good for local people. It’s inspiring to see so many communities and businesses across Scotland working together to improve the places they live and work in.
“For over half a decade we have helped communities and local authorities improve the places they care for, through our Beautiful Scotland competition.
"This opportunity to recognise the most beautiful high street in the country will be a great celebration of those who are working together to ensure we can enjoy cleaner, greener and more sustainable places which help businesses and communities thrive.”
To enter the competition, a short description of up to 300 words with two high resolution High Street images is required explaining why it is deserving.
The deadline for entries is 5pm on September 30. Entries will be shortlisted and the winner will then be chosen by an online public vote and announced during Scotland’s Towns Week in November.
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