FORT WILLIAM
Fort William Town Team met on Monday October 8 in the West End Hotel. Among items discussed were:
Backlands: the car park is still closed. Travelodge is being chased for payment of the town team invoice by email and by leaving voicemail.
Cruise ships: Four cruise ships visited Fort William this summer. A fifth was cancelled as a result of bad weather. Visits went well, particularly communication between the ship and shore. The piper was popular with cruise ship passengers and other visitors to the town. Geopark talks were popular. The town team is liaising with the museum in the hope it will be open for a time on Sundays for all cruise ship visits. Twelve ships are scheduled to visit in 2019. Pontoons: The historical diving suit/Ben Nevis event starting with a dive from the pontoons raised more than £7,500. Beneficiaries include Lochaber Mountin Rescue, the family of the diver who died rescuing boys stranded in a cave in Thailand and the historical diving society.
The pontoons will stay in place over the winter but will need maintained. The surface between the pontoons and the shelter has been levelled by Highland Council which was thanked by the town team. Highland Council may paint the word ‘slow’ at the entrance to the West End car park. A speed limit is unenforceable. Fort William Marina and Shoreline Company is negotiating with the three landowners of the site of the pontoon extension. Retractable canopy: Revised plans have been submitted to Highland Council for planning approval.
New cinema: Several volunteers had been into DV8 to see the plans for the proposed new cinema. Challenges facing the developer regarding the tightness of the site, noise and dust were discussed.
Adopt-a-plot: Gardening was cancelled twice in September as a result of bad weather. The town team have decided to leave the annuals in until end of October as they are still looking good. It was agreed to ask
Lochaber Rotary Club to leave in the Sundial Garden annuals which were due to be removed on Wednesday October 10.
Morrisons has donated 300 winter pansies which the town team will plant in Cameron Square and the hub, leaving the bottom tiers of the three tiered planters until after the SURF judging. The team will try to leave the begonias in Cameron Monument garden and war memorial garden until after the Remembrance Day service. If there is an early frost, team members will remove the begonias and plant the pansies earlier. Christmas tree in Cameron Square: Nevis Landscape Partnership and Forestry Commision have agreed to donate the tree. There will be Christmas lights this year, but because of council cutbacks, there will be no lights in the high street in 2019 unless outside funding/volunteers can be found. Fort William 2040 Consultation:
Two members of the town team attended the workshop and gave an update on some of the discussions that took place, particularly in regard to transportation. It would seem nothing is likely to be done regarding roads congestion until 2025. Councillors pushing for a decision on a link road earlier than 2025 are lobbying for the next phase of the STAG appraisal to determine options as soon as possible.
Concerns were expressed about the 400 new houses due to go up on Blar Mor and the extra traffic this will create. Planning has been submitted for the first 120 units. There was discussion about a cycle way joining Corpach to Fort William and from Caol incorporating the Caol flood defence. There will be a report on the issues raised.