Find below the Agenda and minutes for the upcoming Nairn River Community Council AGM and Ordinary meeting on 20th June 2018 at Nairn Community Centre starting at 7 pm
Agenda NRCC Ordinary meeting 20 June 18
See latest news on Nairn planning applications on our previous posting here
Kingsteps planning decision deferred till Lochloy site visit on 8th August
Plans for 115 homes to be built by Springfield development on Councillor Liz MacDonald\’s land at Kingsteps will go to the planning committee tomorrow 12th June.
See below the planner\’s report,
SPAC 12 Jun18 Item 6.8 Springfield Properties
We feel this report is inadequate in briefing decision makers on the scale and detail of the many objections to this plan posted on the e planning website, both from community groups and residents in Nairn( including NRCC) and from public agencies at Highland level who have raised many concerns about the impact of this major development on local traffic, drainage, sewerage, wildlife and other local services and infrastructure. The additional housing proposed will swell the Lochloy estate to around 1000 homes with no school or community facilities and only a single access road to the A96 and rest of Nairn.
We have thus today along with 2 residents groups( Kingsteps Residents and Nairn Residents Concern Group), lodged a request for a pre determination hearing so that Nairn community can raise the above concerns directly with Planning committee members to ensure that their decision is properly informed.
We have not been permitted a hearing tomorrow before the SPAC meeting but members will be advised of this request tomorrow and it is possible that the decision on Kingsteps plans will be deferred to allow time for a hearing to take place.
Post Script
Under advice from Highland Council lawyers, on 12 June, South Planning Application Committee members decided not to permit Nairn community representatives a pre-determination hearing to present their concerns on the Kingsteps plans.
However, a decision on the plans was deferred, because Highland Councillors Heggie and Fraser spoke up for Nairn and managed to secure a \’site visit\’ for SPAC committee members on 8th August to Lochloy/Kingsteps to see for themselves the potential impacts of the proposed development on Nairn\’s infrastructure and environment.
Lets hope they don\’t get stuck in traffic on the way……
In case you’d like to know what Community Councillors do between meetings ( apart from reading about ourselves in the Nairnshire and on social media….) we have been quite busy since April
LOCAL DECISIONS AND COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT
We have on Monday 6th May sent out a joint letter with 5 other Nairn community groups
to the highest level of Highland Council and the Scottish Government and our elected representatives, to complain about inadequate structures in place to support consultation and involvement of Nairn communities in local development and community planning matters.
We are concerned that in Highland the principles of the Community Empowerment Act ( 2015) are not being effectively implemented, with potentially damaging effects for Nairn when decisions are taken without local consultation and due consideration of local priorities and needs.
You can read this letter here
Local Decisions and Community Empowerment joint letter May18
PARTICIPATION REQUEST TO HIGHLAND COUNCIL
We have also today 10 May sent out a Participation Request to Highland Council to request that Nairn River Community Council and the communities it represents are in future fully consulted on all proposed developments, and action plans relating to all the Outcomes included in the Highland Outcomes Improvement Plan. , with particular focus on the community engagement and consultation outcomes.
Currently the Nairn and Nairnshire Locality Plan – prioritises local consultation only in the context of children and young people which is a start, but clearly not enough.
We are hopeful of a positive response from Highland Council, but are aware of the recent refusal of a previous Participation Request submitted by West and Suburban CC in relation to proposed Parking Charges.
You can read our Participation Request here
NRCC Participation Request May 18
Here is the Agenda for the next meeting of Nairn River Community Council to be held in Nairn Community and Arts Centre at 7 pm on Wednesday 16th May
Agenda NRCC 17 May 2018
You may also be interested in reading the draft minutes of our last meeting
NRCC Draft Minutes 18 April 2018
We have been busy since April – see our next posting to see what we\’ve been up to…
You can find it here
Local consultation and community empowerment
Nairn River Community Council has recently posted three planning comments in relation to current local planning applications. We have noted a number of longstanding concerns around the pressing need for investment in infrastructure ( roads, drainage, sewerage) , and increased traffic congestion in East Nairn ( A96/Lochloy Road, Merryton junction bottleneck) .
We have also noted the pressing need for local school and other community provision at Lochloy estate to keep pace with further housing proposed in this area, as Auldearn Primary is now at full capacity, and Millbank will be if all housing proposed is built. This need only came to our attention in early 2018 after a visit from a Highland Council Care and Learning official to our February meeting to discuss possible changes in school catchment areas across Nairnshire to accommodate the rapid growth in population at Lochloy.
As all 3 pending applications below will impact on traffic and add pressure on other infrastructure in Nairn ( drains, sewerage, schools) we are asking Highland Council Planning committee to consider all three proposals as interlinked. No dates have yet been finalised for these applications to go to SPAC(Planning Committee) and Transport Scotland has asked for more time to review impacts on traffic
Planning comments can be found here with applications on the Highland Council Planning Portal
1/ new development at Sainsbury Site ( McDonalds restaurant and Home Bargains)
2/ pending application for housing Springfield) at Kingsteps/Lochloy (Cllr MacDonald’s land)
3/pending application for housing ( Deveron Homes) at Forres Road (former Morganti house site)
Nairn River Community Council has in January 2018 submitted detailed objections ( in our role as a statutory consultee) to two planning applications for significant new housing developments in East Nairn
You can read our submissions and others on the Highland Council Planning website
Kingsteps application (115 homes) and Forres Rd/A96 Morganti site( 32 homes)*
Our main concerns are that local roads, water and sewerage systems in the town are at bursting point.
Quite literally recently, as could be seen and smelt on Harbour Street when drains overflowed with sewage from our outdated ‘combined’ drainage system after heavy rain on 24th January…
We believe that no more large scale housing can safely be developed in the town, without endangering the health of residents, and our tourist industry, until :
traffic congestion and drainage infrastructure problems are properly addressed and invested in
our natural assets of beaches, green spaces and wildlife are properly valued and protected
local social housing need takes priority over the profit making ambitions of commercial developers.
Letter from NRCC to Nairnshire Telegraph published Tuesday 31 November 2017
Nairn River Community Council