Committee updated on Caithness Place Based Initiative Fund projects

21st January 2025

At a meeting of the Caithness Committee on 20 January 2025, Members were given a progress update on projects receiving support from the Caithness Place Based Initiative Fund before homologating the re-purposing of £1,556 to the Wick Town Centre Regeneration Project.

The £1,556 comes from an underspend in the completed Bus Shelter replacement project.

At the beginning of the current financial year the following projects still had to be completed:

Thurso Active Travel Janet Street.

The Highland Council's Active Travel team is delivering a number of projects in Thurso, including at Ormlie Road and Janet Street. The improvement works at Ormlie Road will provide junction improvements between Castlegreen Road and Juniper Drive with new drop kerbs and tactile paving and some surface repairs. At Janet Street the Place-Based funding is supporting improvement work at the Mall, where the footpath will be widened, resurfaced, vegetation trimmed and the A9 park entrance relocated to the corner of Janet Street. The path towards the bridge will have surface repairs and the bridge leading to the Boating Pond abutment repairs. At the time of report writing works are expected to start imminently and will be completed by April 2025.

Community Led Active travel
Members allocated £20,000 PBI for community based active travel projects in Thurso. In consultation with Local Members and Thurso Community Council, improvement works at Victoria Walk were selected as a priority. The project involves replacing sections of timber fencing on the cliff edge with pedestrian guardrail and repairs to the stone dyke fence on the landward side of the path. The contractor has been appointed and works are due to start shortly. The project will be completed this financial year.

Wick Town Centre Regeneration
The project delivering improvements to the Riverside area is part of a programme of infrastructure repair and improvement works to enhance the appeal of the town centre of Wick to increase the numbers of locals and visitors and boost the economy of the town centre. The project was awarded £18,000 of the £25,000 PBI funding allocated to Wick town centre regeneration to match fund £50,000 from the Council’s Community Regeneration Fund. The project focuses on the Riverside area of the town centre and includes:

• resurfacing St Fergus Road with traffic calming measures

• resurfacing pathways at the Riverside area with level access kerbing

• demarcation of taxi ranks and other parking such as coach parking bays.

These works have substantially been completed, with only the lining works remaining. This will be completed once winter is over and winter maintenance has finished as the salt and low temperatures affect the adhesion of the lining paint.

The remaining £7,000 was used for works around Wick Town Hall including repairs and repainting of railings and stonework, and small scale projects throughout the town centre carried out by Criminal Justice unpaid work team, with support from PBI for materials. Further work continues to be carried out by the Criminal Justice unpaid work team using the remaining balance (£523) along with an underspend of £1,556 from the already completed Bus Shelter replacement project.

Chair of the Committee, Councillor Ron Gunn said: "It was good to have the opportunity to look at the stage the outstanding projects are at and to see progress being made These works will make walking around our towns a lot safer and enjoyable."