Update on Planning Application for 12 flats and CAB on King Street -request for Planning Committee site visit

 
 
Update 5th  Sept 2020
This article appeared in the Press and Journal on 27th August regarding proposed development of a newbuild block of 12 flats and new CAB in Nairn Town Centre
It confirmed that Highland Council(the applicant as well as the planning authority in this proposed development)  has already published tender documents for the building contracts
(which can be found here on the Scottish Public Contracts website portal)
 despite the application having not yet reached the South Planning Applications Committee table for scrutiny and decision.
 
In early August, and again today, Nairn River Community Council as Statutory Consultee, requested that Planning Officers  arrange a ‘site visit’ for members of the South Planning Application Committee to give them an opportunity to see for themselves how this proposed, newbuild would impact on Nairn’s Town Centre landscape and the existing local Masterplan, before they make their decision.  
We have asked Nairn’s elected members to support  this request, since the application is locally controversial and has undergone several changes, the most recent being revisions to parking layout on 19th August.
 

16 July 2020 

As advertised in last Tuesday’s Nairnshire Telegraph – a revised Planning Application has been submitted to Highland Council Planning department for a 3 storey newbuild  block on King Street, to provide  12 flats for social rent and new accommodation for Nairn’s CAB, on the site of the former Community Centre.
This is the third change of design and location in 2 years – the original plan being to renovate the former Police Station buildings, the second to demolish those buildings and build a new 3 storey block nearby on the site of the former Community Centre, while still claiming £195,000 funding from Scottish Government intended for regeneration of existing buildings, for this £3 million ‘newbuild’.
This 3rd revision proposes the same new building in a slightly altered location

If you  wish to comment on this Application – it is open for public consultation till 21st July
You can see this Application and post your views directly online on the Planning website here.

Highland Planning Website – 62 King Street Flats/CAB Application

Nairn River Community Council  has again submitted an Objection to this as Statutory Consultee
you can find this posted below

July2020NairnRiverCC objection 2000338/FUL KIngStreetCABFlats

As you will see  from our response we believe that this is still the wrong building in the wrong place, and incompatible with the priorities of the Nairn Community Town Centre Plan 2015 which were agreed with Highland Council in collaboration with Nairn residents and local community groups.
You can read the detail of this plan below.

Nairn Community Town Centre Plan 2015

The 3 priority themes were to
1/ Improve High Street environment and expand activities (including regeneration of upper floors for housing)
2/Make better use of area between King Street and High Street (including bringing old Police Buildings back into use)
3/Improve walking and cycling links between Nairn town centre and surroundings

In March 2020 Nairn River Community Council  submitted an Objection  to the previous Application for the newbuild flats and CAB, and opposed demolition of the former Police Station buildings.
We are glad to report that this demolition will not now go ahead, allowing scope for alternative proposals to repurpose these heritage buildings, as per the Town Centre Plan.
We also know of many underused and empty buildings in and around the High Street which could be used for social housing and to rehouse the CAB without building anything new.

As previously notified an outline bid for Regeneration funding has recently been submitted to the Scottish Government by NICE   with backing of the Highland Council, BID and the two Nairn town Community Councils, with a view to renovating the Old Police buildings for future community use. 
Other funding avenues are also being explored to regenerate our Town Centre and help Nairn’s local economy to recover at this crucial time.

 
 

Working Together for Nairn’s Regeneration and Economic Recovery

The two Nairn ‘town’ Community Councils (Nairn River, and West and Suburban)  have recentlyissued a joint press release to reaffirm their  commitment to working together with Nairn BID (Business Improvement District) and NICE (Nairn’s Community Enterprise Trust), Highland Council and other local community partners.
With 1 in 4 jobs in Nairn dependent on the tourist industry, the Nairn economy faces an uncertain future and there is an urgent need to work together to  retain and create Nairn jobs and to help Nairn businesses thrive and adapt in the new ‘post COVID’ world

Our current  priorities are to develop a joint plan for  economic recovery and to progress the regeneration of Nairn town centre.

Here is the press release issued in June 2020 by Nairn BID

This joint ‘community led’ approach has already worked well in getting the Links Development off the ground with work now underway, in partnership with Highland Council, to transform the old Paddling Pool into a modern ‘Splash Pad’ using funds from Team Hamish (with NICE support) and Nairn’s Common Good Fund.
Future phases of improvements round the Links area to fulfil the Team Hamish vision are  on the drawing board with more opportunities ahead for community input as they develop.

NICE has recently submitted a Regeneration Capital Grant Fund bid to the Scottish Government with backing from Highland Council, to redevelop the old Police Buildings and deliver on key aims of Nairn’s  Town Centre Plan agreed with community input in 2015.
NICE is also actively exploring with BID and other partners including Community Councils a range of other funding options (such as Community Asset Transfer) to help retain and develop Nairn’s Victorian heritage buildings and other assets for community, business and visitor use, and housing.

As these joint initiatives move forward we want to make sure that Local Community Councils are ‘at the table’, so that local residents are fully consulted to get the best for Nairn and Nairnshire.

Agenda and public invitation for 12 May online meeting of Nairn River Community Council

As advertised in today’s Nairnshire Telegraph , Nairn River Community Council will be holding an online public meeting next Tuesday 12th May from 7.30 – 9.30 pm. Here is the Agenda

AGENDA for Nairn River Community Council online meeting 12 May 2020

Any member of the public in Nairn wishing to attend/observe the online meeting should send an email with their first name, name of street and post code to nrcc.online@outlook.com and request the link to join the meeting.  There will be time for public questions if technology permits.

(Note that this meeting was cut short due to technical and internal difficulties and we are not planning any more online public meetings until we can iron these out and include everyone.)

We will continue to keep you informed and in touch with local issues on this website
and have added a new Community Information page to keep you updated during current lockdown which  will signpost you to local sources of support and information

Your 12  local Community Councillors are still here to help you so please contact them if you want to report or discuss any community  or Planning issue relating to the Nairn River area

Please address any media enquiries to  chair@nairnrivercc.org or secretary@nairnrivercc.org

( Post script  these email  addresses have now changed to chair.nrivercc@gmail.com  or  info.nrivercc@gmail.com

Nairn River Community Council Lockdown update and March 10th Minutes

We hope that everyone is staying safe at home and keeping well in these strange times.
Since 23rd March  Nairn River Community Council has been in lockdown, but members have remained active working from home and continue to serve the local community.

Our members have had a steep ‘learning curve’ mastering online meetings using the Cisco Webex platform, and trying out Google voting to make decisions by email .
With public meetings cancelled, our members agreed to donate  £125 from our operational grant (usually spent on  room hire, and press adverts), to the newly formed Nairn Task Force to fund ID badges for  community volunteers helping vulnerable local households with shopping and deliveries.
For more information on this see our  Community Information page on this website
Community Councillors have continued in lockdown to respond by phone and email to individual residents\’ concerns and questions and we have kept a close eye on Planning matters.
After a \’practice run\’ on 7 April  – we held our first online meeting on 14th April with  8 of our 12 members present, plus 4 members of West and Suburban CC
At that meeting we approved the minutes of our last Public Meeting
Members agreed to write to Highland Council to ask that decisions on two controversial local Planning Applications,  for a new CAB and flats in King Street on the site of the old Community Centre, and for FIT housing at Cawdor Road, be deferred during lockdown along with progress of the Local Development Plan, until we have the chance to  assess the long term impact of this health crisis on our local community and economy.
Community Councils had already been notified by  Highland Council since lockdown that the
consultation on proposed Car Parking Charges for Nairn is now on hold.
We also agreed to  submit a new objection as Statutory Consultee to the revised FIT Housing Application – to support objections from Environmental Health and Gordon\’s Sawmill lodged since our last meeting 10th March, which indicate that  noise mitigation measures proposed by the developer were not going to be adequate to protect residents.
Since the 14th April meeting,  at very short notice, members also agreed a further letter to Highland Council to be sent jointly with West and Suburban CC on 27th April, objecting to proposed changes to the Planning process by Highland Council Planners.
These changes, notified to us on 23rd April for immediate effect on 28th April, would allow Planning Applications to be approved behind closed doors by only two people , the Planning Committee Chair and the relevant Planning Officer,  bypassing scrutiny of the full planning committee.
Many Councillors  raised objections  to this, as well as the 2 Nairn Community Councils.
Our current understanding is that decisions on the following Planning Applications are now deferred until a full meeting of South Planning Applications Committee can be held.
1/ 20/00338/FUL A new CAB and flats on the footprint of the old Community Centre on King Street  with  proposed  demolition of adjacent Old Social Work Building/former Police Station,  and
2/ 20/00493/FUL the  FIT Homes development at Cawdor Road proposed by Albyn Housing
 ( follow Planning website links above for further information including NRCC objections)
Our next meeting will be held online on 12th May at 7.30 when we invite the public to join us
Watch this space and the Nairnshire Telegraph for details of future meetings
We have now created a new Community Information page on this website to keep you updated during current lockdown and beyond-  this will signpost you to local sources of support and information

Nairn River Community Council back up and running Feb 2020

Nairn River Community Council is now back up and running in 2020 after a year off

Our first meeting was in February
Minutes of meeting February 11th 2020
Our  next two public meetings  are Tuesday March 10th  and Tuesday April 14th* both at 7 30 at Nairn Community and Arts Centre ( *due to lockdown members met online on 14 April)

Please send your concerns and questions to secretary@nairnrivercc.org  or chair@nairnrivercc or contact  any of our 12 newly elected volunteer members, listed below
( see our Members page  for contact details)

Tommy Hogg ( Chair)   chair@nairnrivercc.org
Hamish Bain (Vice Chair)
Mandy Lawson ( Secretary)  secretary@nairnrivercc.org
Veronica Mackinnon ( Treasurer)
Steven Bain
Peter Gibson
Ian Gordon
Simon Noble
Paul McIvor
Stewart Stansfield
David Thomson
Katrina Woods

Nairn River CC represents around 5600 residents of  Fishertown, High Street, Lochloy, Merryton, Balmakeith, Broadhill, Boathpark,Househill, Queenspark and Mill Road areas .If you are not sure if you live in our patch see the map of Nairn River territory
Nairn West and Suburban Community Council represents the rest of the former Nairn \’Royal Burgh\’

A Community Council is a \’statutory consultee\’, with a public duty to monitor all  Highland Council Planning and Licensing applications in our area and submit comments as required to reflect  the concerns and best interests of local residents.
Community Councillors are elected by the public but unlike Highland Councillors who are paid  – they are volunteers and do this work in their own time. 

Nairn\’s 4 elected Highland Councillors Laurie Fraser, Tom Heggie, Liz Macdonald and Peter Saggers are ex-officio members of the Community Council which means they can attend but do not vote.

You will find latest information on our meetings and activities here online, in  the Nairnshire Telegraph and on public noticeboards  at Castle Square, the Library and Community and Arts Centre.

We are working hard on improving communication with the local community to make sure that your voice is heard and that  your views and needs are fully reflected in local authority Plans

Please contact members anytime with  your local concerns and  questions and tell us what you think about local housing, infrastructure (roads, drains, sewerage),  public services and amenities in the Nairn River area.

Agenda for Meeting of Nairn River Community Council 23 January 2019

Here is the Agenda for the next public meeting of Nairn River Community Council to be held at Nairn Community and Arts Centre on Wednesday 23rd January at 7pmAgenda for NRCC 23 Jan 2019
We would particularly welcome local residents interested in putting their names forward for the Community Council elections this November to represent the Nairn River community.
(more information below about what we do)
Here also are the Minutes of our last 2 meetings
Minutes NRCC 21 Nov 2018
Minutes Joint NRCC meeting with WSCC 19 Dec 2018

Community Councils Review by Highland Council 
Highland Council has approved at a special meeting on 16th January 2019 a period of consultation on the  recently published 2018-19 Review of Community Councils Scheme of Establishment
Click on the link here for a summary of the main proposals and changes which affect the 5 Nairn and Nairnshire  Community Councils , which we will be discussing at Wednesday\’s meeting.

Next Community Council elections – November 2019
Note that the next elections for Community Council members are due in November this year.
Nairn River Community Council will require to elect 12 members this year.
We would encourage people living in our \’patch\’ to get involved – and stand for election to represent your community.
If interested in nominating yourself or a friend as a future Community Council member please  get in touch with secretary@nairnrivercc.org.
We will need more than 12 nominations for there to be a contested election in November, so get your name in the frame to support local democracy.
Please also feel free to come and introduce yourself at one of our 2019 public meetings to learn how we work and  see what our volunteer members have to deal with.
2019 meeting dates confirmed so far are as follows all  Wednesdays at 7pm
 20 Mar, 15 May, 19 June(AGM), 17 July, 18 Sept, 19 Nov

What are  Community Councils?
Community Councils were brought in by the Local Government Act of 1973 to replace Scottish Parish Councils.
Community Councils in Scotland are quite different from \’Parish Councils\’ in England and Wales who have control over sizeable budgets for spending in the local area.

  • Community Councils are run by unpaid volunteers
  • Community Councillors do not have a vote at Highland Council or other local authority(eg NHS Highland, Police Scotland)
  • Community Councils do not have a \’local budget\’ to spend.
  • After last year\’s 60% cut our current grant  only covers basic meeting and admin costs
  • Community Councils are not a legally incorporated organisation so cannot run local projects
  • Community Councils receive a grant from Highland Council but operate independently of it.
  • Community Councils are principally a communication channel, providing a voice for local citizens and community in public consultation on planning and delivery of local infrastructure and services

Highland Council and Nairn
Since the closure of Nairn\’s local District Council based at the Courthouse in 1996, \’Nairn and Cawdor\’ is one of 21 Highland Council \’Wards\’ in a region which covers half of Scotland.
This locality (Nairn and Nairnshire) is represented by 4 elected Highland  Councillors out of a total of 74 Councillors who have votes at Highland Council meetings in Inverness.
Unlike Community Councillors, who are volunteers, Highland Councillors are paid a salary.
Highland Councillors are non voting members of local Community Councils in their Ward.

Nairn Community Councils joint meeting next Wednesday 19th December 2018 and slides from community presentation for new Highland CEO 14 Dec

Nairn River Community Council will be holding a joint meeting with Nairn West and Suburban Community Council at Nairn Community Centre on Wednesday 19th December from 7pm
This will be primarily a social meeting to review 2018. We will also  feed back on a community visit from Donna Manson the new Highland Chief Executive held last Friday 14 December
At this event around 30 representatives of Nairn  communities shared with Mrs Manson the Nairn perspective on key current issues for local communities and their vision for greater community empowerment and improved collaboration and engagement with Highland Council in the interests of Nairn
Here is the Powerpoint presentation  which was shared with Mrs Manson on 14 December at the Centre
It includes contributions from a wide range of Nairn community organisations and interest groups

Next Nairn River Community Council Meeting – Wednesday 21st November, 7pm Nairn Community and Arts Centre

The next Nairn River CC meeting will be held at the Community and Arts Centre at 7pm  on Wed 21 November 2018
Here is the Agenda  and the Minutes of our last meeting ( Sept 17) 
Main topics discussed were

  • Highland Councils new rules  on Developer Contributions and the mystery of the \’missing millions\’ which Highland Council should have collected from developers for the hundreds of homes  built on Nairn Lochloy estate to pay for infrastructure and community facilities, including a planned school and a bridge over the railway.  A recent  Highland Council response to a Freedom of Information request by a local resident records only £271,000  collected  from Lochloy developers since 2000. The school was removed from the Local Plan with no local consultation, and there is still no sign of the promised bridge to Balmakeith
  • Concerns about how Nairn Common Good Fund is currently managed (with decisions made by the whole Council in Inverness, with our 4 Nairn Councillors well outnumbered). How do we  ensure that Nairn residents have a proper say in how Common Good Assets ( like the Links and Sandown Lands) and CG Funds in the bank are used in future in the best interests of our town?  Do  we need a more appropriate governance structure, as many other Scottish towns have for their Common Good Funds, like a charitable trust with locally appointed trustees?
These discussions will continue on Wednesday along with the usual planning and community planning updates. 
We also expect more detail from our Highland Councillors on the business case for local Parking Charges,   such as costs of implementing and policing, and how projected revenue would be used.