25-10-12 Carradale Harbour Group Whats Next
Meeting on Thursday 1st November in the Network Tea Room at 6pm.
On October 2nd Carradale Harbour Group (CHG) presented (architects) Smith Scott Mullen’s plans for Carradale harbour to our local Councillors and some senior Council officers. Whilst one or two had heard before of the plans they had no detail on what was being considered. After being given the background to CHG, the project and the consultative process was explained. Mike Hurst then presented the plans and ideas.
The attendees expressed considerable enthusiasm for the project and due to the very positive reaction received CHG have now been invited to present to the Mid Argyll, Kintyre & Islay Area Committee on 7th November.
One of the main reasons for the meeting was to raise and discuss the possibility of CHG taking control of the council property in and around the car park area with the possibility of realigning the road to maximise the land area for development. Argyll and Bute Council have recently adopted a policy of passing ownership of property that is no longer required to community groups. CHG could be the first group to take advantage of this new “Asset Transfer” policy. Those attending the meeting from both sides agreed to look into the process further as taking over this land is likely to be a complex process and reassurances will be required on various aspects of the scheme
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So what of the future?
The CHG are aware this project requires very careful planning and needs maximum information on the three vital areas, (Acquisition, Planning and Construction). Funding needs to be put in place and the continued support of the local community is essential prior to the project getting the full go ahead.
Next Stage is to locate funding to obtain all the required complex information. Planning Approvals, Quantity Surveys, Marine Surveys etc etc will all be required before we can finalise the design. There is tremendous funding available from a variety of sources for community regeneration projects, especially for communities like Carradale. After the meeting with the Councillors and senior officers CHG met with Malcolm McMillan (South Kintyre Development Trust) and Brenda Sutherland (A&BC Social Enterprise Unit) to discuss potential funding sources. Working through these leads will be the next part of the project.
This is a very exciting project which, if turned into reality, would benefit all, (young and old), who live, work and holiday in Carradale now and in the future. Whilst the current plans show the full development potential and possibilities, the reality could be that the project is only completed in stages depending on the land and funding available.
If you are interested in finding out more or want to be part of the group developing the Carradale Harbour area you are cordially invited to come along to a meeting on Thursday 1st November in the Network Tea Room at 6pm. The meeting will last about one hour.
To view the proposed plans and to keep updated with CHG please visit wwwcarradaleharbour.co.uk.
Alan Milstead, Chairman, Carradale Harbour Group
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