Grantown businesses ‘disrupted’ by midnight stopover of travelling community
Travellers who moved into a Grantown industrial estate last night have told the Strathy they intend moving on in the morning.
It was around midnight last night that a number of families moved onto the Achnagonalin.
“They opened a secure gate to move into the parking area of 10 units,” said one of the local business representatives.
Shirley Rattray, director of Woodlands Service Centre, shared concerns that some businesses had faced difficulties opening up this morning because of the siting of the travellers’ vehicles.
“The newly established vets have had to completely shut down today as the travellers had their dogs tied to the doors.
“The vets are having to go out onto the street here to hand over drugs to their clients for their pets as the clients can’t get into the business.
“We are one of approximately two dozen businesses here on Achnagonalin, who are being restricted to carry on with our work.”
Police were asked to intervene and have since made two visits to the estate to speak with the travellers.
There has been no comment from the Highland Council as yet.
But two of the travellers, who preferred to stay nameless and off camera, told the Strathy they had simply been visiting from Ireland and had come up yesterday from Glasgow.
“We will be leaving tomorrow because we’re heading for Appleby.”
The Appleby Horse Fair, in Cumbria, is a major traveller gathering which takes place annually at the beginning of June.
