£90k Worth Of Community Regeneration Funding Awarded By Caithness Councillors to Wick Campsite Toilets

24th August 2023

Members of the Caithness Area Committee, who met on Monday, 21 August 2023, considered and agreed funding for an application submitted to the area's Community Regeneration Fund.

The Wick Development Trust successfully secured £90,000 towards Phase 2 of their overall development plan, with this phase focusing on the development of a Toilet Block & Facilities building at Wick River Campsite.

Community Regeneration Funding is an umbrella term for a number of funds that are available for communities and organisations to access in Highland. It comprises the Highland Coastal Communities Fund and the Place Based Investment Programme, both of which are Scottish Government Funding streams to support economic regeneration and sustainable development in Highland, and also the UK Government's UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

Councillor Ron Gunn, Chair of the Caithness Area Committee, congratulated the successful applicant and commented: "My Ward colleagues and I are delighted to be able support the work of the Wick Development Trust with this funding. In recent years, the Trust was successful in its bid to take over the running of the Wick River Campsite as a not-for-profit enterprise, with a three-phase plan to bring the site up to a modern and fit-for-purpose standard as a visitor facility.

Cllr Gunn continued: "With the funding agreed by Wards members, work on Phase 2 of the plan - which is for the development of a Toilet Block & Facilities building – will be due to start in November once other match funding is in place. The project will deliver a new toilet & facilities building which will include showers, accessible toilet/shower room, family shower room, laundry and wash-up area, all with energy efficiency and net zero ambitions at the forefront of design."

The Wick Development Trust (WDT) was set up in 2019 with the long-term goal to support and enable the regeneration of the Town of Wick. The Board of Trustees are a group of local people who volunteer their expertise to WDT to stimulate economic recovery and growth in the town.

This phase of the project is scheduled to take around seven months to complete, concluding in April 2024.

The total project cost is £450,837.64.

Other funds requested from -
HIE - Green Fund
Dounreay Socio-Economic Fund
Community & Renewable Energy Scheme
Highland Council Community Loan Fund
Plus own funds already held

For full details read the paper HERE

Other topics discussed at the meeting
5. Scottish Fire & Rescue Service - Area Performance Report Report,
6. Winter Service Plan 2023/24 Report,
7. Thurso Common Good Fund - Asset Register Report, 2
8. Wick Common Good Monitoring Report Report,

The full meeting can be viewed HERE

Note
The public toilets at Wick Riverside car park are a separate council project and are now at a very advanced stage having been completely renewed including a new roof.