Spat over Highlands town centre funding allocation
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Millions of Scottish Government cash being invested in the region's town centres that was touted as “good news story” almost turned foul at Highland Council.
A spat over how the Inverness allocation of almost £600,000 from the £2.96 million Town Centre Regeneration fund would be spent triggered a row in chamber.
The dispute centred on which projects were eligible for consideration erupted with Inverness councillors on one side and the Inverness administration and officers on the other.
Other councillors looked on as the city members battled over where the cash was to go at the authority's environment, development and infrastructure meeting.
Convener Bill Lobban standing up at one stage saying: “If you don’t want the money my ward, like others, will take it because we could spend the money many times over.”
It threatened to derail the approval of funds going elsewhere in the Highlands until Councillor Ian Cockburn came to the rescue.
He proposed a motion supported by the committee chairman Allan Henderson to send the Inverness issues back to the Inverness area committee while approving the other projects to move ahead.
Six projects got approved in the strath ranging from a new community hub on Kingussie's High Street to redevelopments within Grantown's historic square.
See today's Strathy for more details on the project.
