Yacht club car park rules clarified

CONFUSION over car parking rules at Lochaber Yacht Club appears to have been cleared up this week.

The Lochaber Times was contacted by a reader who said any feelings of community spirit she had previously had been ‘severely tarnished’ after her car was deliberately blocked in by someone at the club last Thursday.

Sarah Gray said she parks at the club every morning to walk her dog, but unfortunately had an unpleasant exchange with a club member after being blocked in.

Despite not being a member of the club, Sarah said she quite often parks her car in its car park for half an hour as long as it is not busy. She has also competed in both the junior and senior Loch Linnhe swims on many occasions and had ‘enjoyed the use of the fantastic facilities at Lochaber Yacht Club afterwards’.

Mrs Gray said: ‘Unfortunately, we had had a family bereavement the night before and I was quickly walking the dog down by the loch on my way to Glasgow to pick up my brother and bring him home for the funeral.

‘I came back to the car to find I had been blocked in by a member of the club who, when politely asked to move his vehicle, flatly and rudely refused. I explained my circumstances, to no avail, while he threatened me with leaving his car in situ and even reporting my presence to the police.

‘Eventually, he relented and allowed me to leave.’

Speaking to the Lochaber Times, Mrs Gray said she would be happy to pay a club membership or contribute to the car park maintenance if it was an option.

She said: ‘I would be delighted to contribute to the club if that’s its policy for parking, but I don’t know the rules.

‘A lot of people have had similar problems because they are not sure what’s allowed. It’s such a shame because it’s a local club. A lot of tourists use the car park and I wouldn’t want them to be given the same treatment I was. I hope we can find a friendly solution.’ Lochaber Yacht Club spoke to the

Lochaber Times to try to clear up the situation. Commodore Hamish Loudon said: ‘The entire area belongs to the yacht club and the car park is not free. It is for club members. We are about to embark on repairing the car park, which is costing a lot.

‘The car park seems to be regarded as free, but we have to be careful because we need to be fair to our members who pay to use the facilities.

‘We are not here to make money like council-run car parks but we need to protect the interests of our members. The club doesn’t want to be anti-social but it’s a delicate balancing act to make sure people who want to come down and park to take a boat out are able to.

‘Anyone wishing to become a member of the club can fill out a form on our website.’