Crieff conundrums
Dear Editor I, along with many other readers, must be wondering what is happening to our dear town of Crieff?
The head banner of over the last few weeks in the Herald must have caused puzzlement to say the least.
To name one or two: ‘Let’s Make It Feel Just Like Home’; ‘D-Day Looming On Food Store’; ‘£17K To Fund Hotel Study’. Where is Crieff going? We seem to get lots of new folk coming to live here who are not long in trying to work wonders. Why spend £17K on what needs to be done to the Drummond Arms. Would it not been better to tidy up the George Hotel in King Street? The George is a disgrace!
The Drummond Arms is a disappointment, and then we have The Star (or Crieff Hotel) going the same way!
Now, what about our long-awaited supermarket? What’s happening to it, or is that going to be another feasibility study?
Perhaps your readers may have noticed there’s plenty going on and being spent in Perth. No
way do Perth want us to get an Aldi, Tesco – whatever – because then we would not need to go to Perth to shop then.
Another sore point is, after the festive season, people will start to think about holidays and short breaks.
If anyone thinks about coming to Crieff, or perhaps about bus tours stopping over, where will they reside? We have no hotels able to cope in the area! We have lost the Drummond Arms, The Star, The George, Arduthie, Waverley, Ancaster, Victoria and one or two large boarding houses.
Let’s hope our new community council will seriously look at tourism as this was one item Crieff depended on seriously.
We don’t want buses to just visit the visitors’ centre, then Glenturret Distillery and then head off to the west coast after that. We can relay on Crieff Hydro for some tourists – and, believe you me, we will need them!
Let’s hope we see some action very soon from our new community council.
Perhaps some will think of forming a Tourist, Hoteliers and Shopkeepers’ Association – there was one long ago! 2nd Watch
• Editor’s note: The above letter was received after the Local Review Body meeting on Tuesday last week which saw Aldi receive in principle planning permission for a food store and separate retail unit on land at Duchlage Farm, Crieff.