Nairn River Community Council

Our next online meetings, open to you to join

NRCC will hold its next scheduled Ordinary Meeting in public on Zoom on Wednesday 15th September 2021, from 7.30 pm. We will post the agenda here a week in advance.

Other scheduled meeting dates for 2021 are here

If you would like to register to attend please send an email to: nrcc.online@outlook.com with your name and postcode. We will send you an invitation to join the meeting with the zoom link nearer to the meeting date.

(Invitations are normally issued within 24 hours before the meeting to maintain security)

We cannot guarantee to process meeting registrations after 6 pm on the day of the meeting

It is important for meeting security that you can be identified by the name you provide when you join and that you do not share the link with anyone else who has not registered.

Reminder – Special Meeting, 1st March 2021

Don\’t forget, NRCC is holding a Special Meeting on Monday, 1st March at 7 pm Here\’s the link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83401588866?pwd=RXQzdERTdlBGOGtSTG1u cEI0MExXQT09

Special Meeting

The proportion of NRCC members requesting a Special Meeting has reached the proportion (50%) required to hold one. The purpose of the meeting is to review the way in which NRCC conducts its business and decide how we move forward constructively in the future with regards to:

Sub groups

Governance for members and office bearers.

Communications

The secretary is required to arrange a meeting, giving the public at least 7 days notice. This has been arranged to be held at 7pm next Monday, 1st March. The Zoom link has been created using a paid account, so there will be no break in proceedings.

Topic: NRCC Special Meeting
Time: Mar 1, 2021 07:00 PM London

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83401588866?pwd=RXQzdERTdlBGOGtSTG1ucEI0MExXQT09

Meeting ID: 834 0158 8866
Passcode: 123123

Details of our meeting on 10th February 2021

NRCC is to have its next ordinary meeting on-line via zoom on Wednesday 10th February, starting at 7pm.

You can join us by clicking this link (or copy and paste it into your browser search box at the top of the page):

https://us04web.zoom.us/j/77897877229?pwd=VFlpbEdUSWtZTHRRNkdUVlBiR3Jmdz09

The papers currently available for you to read are:

Agenda for meeting

Application for funding a Trekker

Planning Tracker

Correspondence Report

Correspondence Log

As further papers become available we\’ll add them on this page. Look forward to seeing you next week.

Our next meeting

NRCC\’s next meeting will be on zoom on 10th February 2021 at 7.30 pm. We will publish the link here and on social media about a week before. Meantime, if there are issues you would like NRCC to look at do let us know by emailing secretary@nairnrivercc.org. We can\’t promise to include it on the agenda immediately but we will respond as soon as we can.

What\’s Next for NRCC?

At our AGM on 13th January four members of the community council were elected as office bearers:

Hamish Bain, Chair

Peter Gibson, Deputy Chair

Veronica MacKinnon, Treasurer

Simon Noble, Secretary

There is much to do, particularly to organise how we represent our community, and how we communicate with you. We are currently exploring how we might develop our website so keep an eye out for changes here quite soon.

Nairn Common Good consultation – Nairn Links Tearoom and Store

Public consultation is now open till 06 January 2021 – on proposals to dispose of two Nairn Common Good Assets

1.the Links Tearoom – new 30 year lease arrangement proposed

2. the \’Store\’ former kiosk/shop on Links – proposed for demolition and landscaping (retain power supply)

These two properties are part of the Links which is a Common Good Asset gifted to the people of the Burgh of Nairn as part of its Royal Charter in 1586

A 12 week consultation period is required for any changes of use or disposals to Common Good Assets and all residents of the former Royal Burgh of Nairn are entitled to have a say in these proposals

Any changes or disposal to Common Good Assets such as these which are \’inalienable\’ will also require an application for formal consent from the Sheriff Court

Details of the consultation are below

Links Tearoom and Store – Common Good public consultation

Nairn River Community Council will be discussing a response with members and will post it here in due course. For now Office Bearers are generally supportive of a longer lease to permit the current lease holder to invest in improvements to the Tearoom, but are open to public suggestions for alternative uses for the \’Store\’ rather than complete demolition and we will be seeking to clarify what is meant by proposed \’landscaping\’ if the building is removed

Please submit written representations to:-

Email: commongood@highland.gov.uk

Post: Sara Murdoch, Highland Council, Headquarters, Glenurquhart Road, Inverness, IV3 5NX.

If you would also like to share comments or suggestions with Nairn River CC on this matter please post them below

Nairn River CC Statutory Consultee submission re Cawdor House/Lavender Cafe ‘change of use’ Application

Nairn River Community Council have recently submitted a Statutory Consultee comment to the Planning portal, regarding a retrospective change of use Application by Cawdor House B and B, Cawdor Street, Nairn, who have been operating an outdoor cafe since July 2020.

This Application has attracted diverse public comments and strong views on either side.

To help us prepare a fair and balanced submission, two Nairn River CC Office Bearers visited the Applicant, and two of their Cawdor St neighbours, to see the location for ourselves, and to listen to local concerns about the new cafe operation. We also discussed with Cawdor House proprietors some possible ways to address these concerns.

We then shared our findings with NRCC members and after securing majority agreement, posted a neutral submission( neither Object or Support) , which presented several suggestions for Planners to consider, re ‘mitigating measures’ to reduce nuisance to neighbours.

Information about the original Cawdor House change of use Application and public comments can be found on the Highland Council Planning Portal.

Due to the volume of public comments, it was expected that this Application would go before the South Planning Applications Committee(SPAC) for scrutiny, rather than being delegated to Planning Officers for decision. In the event the application was withdrawn in November 2020. A new ‘scaled down’ application was submitted in December 2020 to the SPAC, which our members voted to Support, and was passed on 27th April 2021.

More information here on the Highland Council Planning Portal

Have your say on Phone Boxes, Police Scotland, Pre Planning Consultation, Short Term Lets, Bathing Water signage – public consultations

Here is a list of public consultations open now to which you can contribute as a member of the public right now – with deadlines where available. Feel free also to feed back to Nairn River CC directly on any of these topics by

1/adding your own comments to our blog below

2/send an email to secretary@nairnrivercc.org or chair@nairnrivercc.org. or

3/ talk to your local community councillor.

A full list of your local community councillors can be found on members page is on this website.

Police Scotland Survey

You can also complete this survey over the phone by calling 07717 150 296 and leaving a message. A member of the survey team will then call you back.

BT Payphone Consultation survey open till 10th October 2020

3 boxes under threat in Nairn town , High St(Castle Square), Moss Side and Fraser Park

Scottish Government Proposed Changes to Pre Planning Public Consultation Requirements

about how developers consult the public before a development proposal becomes a formal Application in the Planning system before the Planning Committee.

Scottish Government Short Term Lets Consultation Open until 10th October

Guidelines for how local authorities can develop local policies to manage and regulate short term and holiday lets in their area. Includes proposal to register all properties being used for short term let.

Current Planning Applications – Highland Council

this is the link to the main online portal where you can find all live planning applications.

Nairn River CC is in Nairn and Cawdor Ward

link below to the most recent application which Nairn River have lodged a submission to as Statutory Consultee

– re the proposed CAB /Flats development on King Street

Highland Council -development consultations

There is information on about a dozen completed development related consultations on the Highland Council website at present – the only open one currently is the

COVID 19 Active Travel Network which SUSTRANS is leading on to promote walking and cycling.

Parking Charges, Camper Vans and Toilets- NRCC initial questions

We have posted own set of questions for locals on the above topics to help inform joint discussions between Highland Council and local community groups to help get Nairn ready for 2021 tourist season

As such developments could mean changes to Common Good land ( Links, Maggot, Harbour), if any proposals go forward Highland Council will need to carry out formal consultation with the local community before any changes can be implemented.( this is not it – as nothing is agreed yet!)

To help inform what happens next, please feed back your views on initial questions above

You can post comments on our blog, email us, or talk to your community councillor or Highland Councillor directly

Bathing Water Signage ( SEPA) consultation open till 13 October

Public Questions -parking and visitor facilities- to help Nairn Community groups work with Highland Council to improve 2021 tourist welcome

An online meeting was held on 1st September 2020 which brought together representatives of the two Nairn Community Councils ( Nairn River and Nairn West and Suburban) , BID and NICE ( Nairn\’s Community Development Trust) with 3 of Nairn\’s Highland Councillors and a number of Highland officers involved with transport and parking, policy, and improvement of tourist welcome facilities(eg toilets, campervans) across Highland.

For more information on community groups \’Team Nairn\’ joined up approach to getting the best for Nairn see our previous posting on Working Together for Nairn

All present agreed that there was a shared wish to improve Nairn\’s tourist welcome and visitor amenities, to help the local economy recover from impacts of the COVID lockdown

Nairn needs to be ready for a further influx of \’Staycation\’visitors including camper vans in 2021 so it is important to explore ways to target resources on improvements to local visitor facilities, as has happened in other parts of Highland, which have seen significant investment by Highland Council in new toilets and car parks, such as in Skye and on the North Coast 500 route. Nairn may be eligible for funding from the new Coastal Communities Fund to fund such improvements.

At this meeting Highland Council representatives proposed the following areas for discussion.

1/ improving toilet facilities and waste disposal for Camper Vans near the Harbour,

(where current public toilets are closed)

2/the possibility of Highland Council working with Nairn communities to bring in a new parking charges scheme on 3 \’seafront\’ parking areas – the Harbour, the Maggot, Cumming Street/Links

( all 3 are Common Good lands)

Various \’business models\’ were described which are operating in other Highland Communities , where Highland Council oversees collection of charges and parking enforcement. Options include the Council paying a one off annual rental to Nairn Common Good fund to operate car parks, or agreeing a percentage of surplus funds to be released for local community spending.

Note that all 3 of these existing car parks are on Nairn Common Good land

This means that 100% of income should return to Nairn, so any scheme negotiated with the local community would have to demonstrate measurable benefits to Nairn communities, once all the set up and management costs and any potential negative impacts on surrounding neighbourhoods are factored in. Income could also vary widely depending on the hours, and number of days per year charges are in place and whether locals are to pay for parking as well as visitors.

There may also be added policing and parking enforcement costs in surrounding streets with \’displacement\’of cars to Fishertown where onstreet parking is already at a premium, due to pressure from holiday lets in summer, which has already been causing local concerns

Parking Charges – and Holiday Lets Policy

Highland Council has yet to develop a \’ holiday lets policy\’ with local communities.

Scottish Government has given local authorities the powers to do this- and City of Edinburgh is already working on it. This is becoming urgent for tourist dependent communities like Skye and Nairn.

Improved regulation, and operating guidelines for holiday lets could help to target appropriate facilities for visitors (including parking) in areas where holiday lets are common.

It could also help ensure that tourists are made to feel welcome in local communities, rather than causing friction re parking, and that the tourist industry enhances local communities and does not allow growth in holiday lets to undermine availability of affordable housing for local families and workers.

Community Empowerment, and Common Good legislation

Under Community Empowerment Act-Scotland any proposals for a change of use to Common Good Assets ( including land ) must be developed transparently by Highland Council and other agencies/funders working closely with local (Nairn) communities to negotiate a mutually beneficial arrangement.

Any proposals put forward for changes to CG land, as well as having to comply with Planning and other legislation( eg re environmental impacts), will also require a 12 week\’Common Good\’ public consultation to obtain community approval before any changes can go ahead

If the Common Good land is also deemed \’inalienable\'( which much of Nairn\’s is) the applicant will also have to fund an application to the Sheriff Court for permission to make this change.

So as you can see there is still a lot of research, paperwork, and negotiation to come before any proposed new parking schemes or toilet improvements, however welcome, could be implemented

Note also that all Nairn\’s public toilets are currently on Common Good land

Next Steps for Community Dialogue

Any proposed \’action plan\’ for parking charges or other improvements under discussion by Highland Council with Nairn community representatives, will be put before the public.

To maximise community engagement there will be a full 12 week public consultation period for any proposed activity on Common Good land.

All public feedback has to be taken into account, before any plans affecting Common Good Assets can be finalised. I f the community are generally opposed , plans cannot proceed and must go back to drawing board

What is the point of this ?

If you are a Nairn resident, these 3 car parks are Common Good assets, intended for your benefit ( not Highland Council\’s) and you have a say in what happens to them.

The 12 Nairn River Community Councillors as your community representatives want to make sure that all the right questions are asked, community views are gathered, and that all possible options are explored, so that

1/our town gets the best possible solution for both locals and visitors by making the most of resources available.( including public funding)

2/the people of Nairn (for whose sole benefit Common Good assets are intended) get something that they actually want, which has tangible benefits for the community

3/Nairn\’s Common Good assets are protected and preserved for future generations to enjoy

The Big Questions

See below some questions to consider before any action plan proposals are drafted for further public consultation

These are the questions which members of the 2 CCs , NICE and BID are already considering, based on Highland Council has put forward.

As plans develop there may be more questions.

Re Parking Charges

1/ Do you think that parking charges should be progressed as a general principle on the 3 Common Good sites mentioned ( Harbour, Cumming St , Maggot)?

2/ Do you think parking charges on Common Good land should be managed and run by Highland Council ?

3/ What kind of management contract would you prefer to see if THC takes on the parking operation?

this could -be an up front a one off rental fee ( 5-10 k in other parts of Highland) a management contract where a \’cut\’ of the income eg 50/50 ( minus costs) comes back to CG fund. a service level agreement -which could entail a 20% fee to THC and % of net income

4/Do you want Nairn to explore other \’community led\’ alternatives for managing these Common Good facilities – ( eg in Findhorn a local community trust manages a car park and collects parking fees )

5/Do you want to see Parking Charges introduced in other parts of Nairn ( eg Town Centre)?

If Yes please suggest where.

Re camper van parking

1/ are you in favour of designated parking areas for Camper Vans near Nairn Seafront ( at Maggot, Cumming St and/or Harbour? )

2/If you are in favour – what is your preferred location of the above 3?

3/do you have any other suggestions for a suitable location for Camper Vans in Nairn(shire) Re toilets near Harbour

1/ do you want existing Harbour St toilets re instated with chemical waste disposal added? ( as Cllr Heggie has proposed)

2/ Do you want to see new relocated toilet facilities in this area – if so where? ( eg Maggot, other site near Harbour)

3/ What facilities should they have? eg chemical waste disposal, public showers? ( there was also discussion of proposal to add showers at Links toilets )

4/ are there any other improvements to public toilets or other visitor facilities such as parking that you would like to see in place before the 2021 tourist season

Holiday Lets

1/ are there any actions you would like to see taken forward to help Nairn to manage holiday lets ( eg Air BnB) better

2/Would you like to see Highland Council bring in a \’holiday lets policy\’ for Nairn(shire)

3/ If Yes to 2 – what kind of regulations/guidelines would you like this to include for Nairn holiday let owners?

4/If yes to 2, Would you like Nairn(shire) to define \’designated areas\’ where holiday lets are permitted, and others where they are not ?

Please feel free to add your own views and suggestions to the mix to help us negotiate the right solutions for Nairn.

Tell Us What you Think

Thanks for your comments and emails so far

(Aug 21 -comments are now closed here as we await an official Highland Council consultation in autumn 2021 on parking charges at Nairn seafront Common Good car parks which have been voluntary since June )

If you want your voice to be heard on any community matters like this, please talk to your Community Councillors and Highland Councillors and use ‘official channels’ to communicate your views via public consultations or surveys on parking charges, use of Common Good etc .

Note that personal opinions voiced on local social media eg Facebook on any community matters, won’t normally be taken account of as part of an ‘official’ public consultation.

Feel free to suggest other areas of local concern which Nairn River Community Council should be engaging with the public on, to make sure local views are heard and taken on board by Highland planners and decision makers.