Local area committee votes for proposal to charge public for using Grantown Square
Badenoch and Strathspey councillors have rejected their own officers’ recommendation not to impose charges for the use of Grantown’s Market Square.
In voting unanimously to proceed with the process of introducing mandatory charges, they took issue with not just the officials but also the members of the community who they felt had unfairly accused them of wanting to plug Highland Council’s huge budget deficit.
As he moved his motion at the June local area committee meeting in the Strathspey capital, Councillor Bill Lobban declared: “To say I’m surprised by the recommendation is a mild understatement. It fails to realise the potential benefit that a functioning common good fund would have for the people of Grantown on Spey.”
Mr Lobban pointed out that “17 out of 23 people have objected, including one from Nethybridge. The last time I looked, Grantown has approximately 2,500 residents - I wonder what the other 2,477 people think?”
The Highland Council convener felt that the whole issue raised a question about how the authority carried out consultations, if it only received 23 responses out of 2,500 people.”
The officers’ recommendation not to proceed with charging for use of the Square was based on the opinions of 17 people or approximately “half of one per cent of the population”.
When stallholders turned up for the Grantown Show or the games they paid handsomely for the privilege, Mr Lobban pointed out, “and yet according to some of the responses a small charge for using the Square would have them abandon Grantown for ever.
“Others have claimed we should not consider commercialisation of the Square, but it’s already commercialised - do you think stallholders who attend the farmers market are charities in the main? Mostly they are commercial businesses looking to make profit.
In neighbouring Aviemore, he pointed out, the village green, an area less than 10 per cent the size of the Square, had made £5,000 last year.
Some of the comments made by critics that the money would be used to fill a hole in the council’s budget were too ludicrous even to consider, Mr Lobban felt.
“The Square belongs to the people of Grantown, all of the people of Grantown, not just a very vociferous minority. The money raised will be the same, it will never be the council’s money, it will belong to the people. These charges will slowly but surely accumulate into a common good fund for the benefit of the people of Grantown on Spey.”
Committee chair Russell Jones was equally disappointed at the comments which had been made by some about the use of any money raised: “The money’s certainly not going to Highland Council. It’s to accrue some sort of fund for the people of Grantown.
“Common good funds can be used in other places for Christmas lights, for old folks dinners, for public access, defibrillator maintenance, lots of community benefit.”
Councillor Muriel Cockburn agreed that 23 people was not necessarily representative of the community: “What we’re trying to do is maximise any income generated for the community, for them to do with whatever they desire.”
Her own concern was that fixing the fees for charities would be locally done and common good fund officer Sara Murdoch could see no reason why it wouldn’t be.
Councillor Lobban’s motion to proceed with the process was seconded by Councillor Cockburn.
Councillor John Bruce wanted to be sure that local people would be in control: “I don’t think the Highland Council should have a hand in it.”
He was assured by Mr Lobban that it would be local: “The trustees of the common good fund are all inside this room.”
Before the meeting Grantown’s community council chairman Ewan MacGregor had shared others’ concerns over the proposal, pointing out that the consultation held by the council from last October to December had drawn angry responses.
“As a community council we are dead against this because it is detrimental to the town. We want people to use The Square and not to be discouraged from doing so.
“If the council is going to impose charges on people wanting to use The Square then it is very short-sighted and will not help the town at all.”
“The long-running Motormania event went because of the proposed charges that the council was intending to impose for traffic management. This was a popular event that had been running for more than 20 years without any problems whatsoever.
“All the road management was undertaken by event officials and marshalls and there was never a problem until the council decided to get involved and made it completely unviable.They are killing our big community events and that is not helping local shops and businesses in the town.
Mr MacGregor continued: “Highland Council seems to be hellbent on imposing charges for road closures and road traffic management which we have never had to pay for before.”
After the area committee’s decision he told the Strathy: “I think if the public consultation had been properly undertaken by Highland Council the outcome would have been very different.
“It will be interesting to see how the charging scheme is implemented and regulated by the councillors. It appears the current invitation to pay will cease and new charges will be set and applied.”
