Wee Choo Thai has to liquidate
Family say planning appeal delays mean they can’t sustain train restaurant dream
The family who wanted to open a Thai restaurant in converted train carriages in Pitlochry say they have no choice but to go into voluntary liquidation.
The McCallum family say this is because their planning appeal has not been heard by Perth and Kinross Council.
Their dream was to use two converted railway carriageways as a novelty eatery, opening the Wee Choo-Choo Restaurant in the Highland Perthshire tourist town this summer.
But having gained planning permission in April 2021, the plan was stymied when at a meeting on June 14 they failed to secure a site for the restored first class carriages.
Three people objected and the proposed lease of 12 spaces next to the railway track in Rie-Achan Car Park, owned by PKC, was turned down, five votes to two in favour.
Controversy stemmed from the issue of public parking spaces being lost when a parking problem had been identified in Pitlochry.
The grim reality now is Fergus McCallum, his wife Isara and daughter Mia must disolve the Wee Choo limited company.
“I am having to go with my wife and 19-year-old daughter to a liquidator’s offices in Glasgow on Thursday to put our company and our dreams into voluntary liquidation primarily because convenor Murray Lyle will not rehear the matter, despite replacement car parking spaces being identified by his engineers after the first hearing and despite the wishes of 1169 petitioners who have a different position from the three objections the committee heard last time,” fumed the businesman.
“I am embarrassed to be taking my wife and daughter to a liquidator when I have no idea why the council won’t review the matter in the light of these two new pieces of evidence.”
Mr McCallum claims requests to appeal PKC’s decision were never acknowledged at 2 High Street.
Yesterday the property subcommittee met in private and the Wee Choo-Choo was not on the agenda.
The family were hit by the hiatus and in late August declared they would close their existing business - Thistle and Orchid Beauty Ltd - to conserve funds to keep the restaurant battle going.
At the same time they made public their plight through a petition calling for Perth and Kinross Council leader Murray Lyle to act to settle the matter.
The McCallums commented in a social media post on Friday: “We’d very much like to present this matter to the committee again.
“We think that our concept is unique and appropriate and exciting and will add more colour and vibrancy to the offer available in Pitlochry.
“Many of our community signed our petition asking Convenor to allow our application to be heard again.
“This would have allowed the committee to know that over 1169 people support the project.
“Last time [the property subcommittee] only heard three objectors positions.
“The meeting will be held this Monday, [October 25] and [Wee Choo-Choo] is not being listed, in fact Convenor Lyle has not replied if he will or will not agree to hear the matter.
“We are only three members of the electorate in Perth and Kinross and we accept we are not that important. But we don’t think Convenor Lyle should ignore hundreds of Perthshire residents making a request because the electorate is important.”
In a separate post, 19 yearold Mia McCallum referred to the dissolution of the beauty salon where she and her mum had worked: “Our company Thistle and Orchid Beauty is now closed.
“We have struggled as a family to survive the impact of Perth Council’s decision at the property sub-committee.
“Unfortunately the council has not yet agreed to rehear our application to the property subcommittee despite the petition.
“We have a meeting with Murdo Fraser MSP on November 5 to ask if he could exert some pressure on the council to rehear the application.
“The Wee Choo-Choo Limited is in financial distress due to the very delayed opening and no way to convince our lenders that we have a viable business, therefore it will close forever.”
Yesterday, a spokesperson for Perth and Kinross council said: “The decision not to lease the [car park] land was made in general, not on [the McCallum family’s] specific proposal.
“Planning permission was granted to allow Class 3 business use on part of the RieAchan car park in Pitlochry in April this year but no lease had been agreed for the site, which belongs to the council.
“The council was required to make a decision as the landowner.
“When the property subcommittee met in June, it was asked to decide whether to lease the land for Class 3 business use in general, not on the merits of any specific proposals.
“Councillors voted five to two against putting the site on the open market for lease.”