250 packed into Lochcarron Village Hall on Monday night for a public meeting regarding the measures being taken short and longer term to combat the closure of the A 890 Stromeferry Bypass between Lochcarron and Kyle/Plockton due to the danger of further rock fall. The meeting was advised that the road was likely to remain closed until at least 17 February, when The Highland Council hoped to be able to reopen the road on a temporary basis.
Following The Highland Council's success at the Loo of the Year Awards, staff from the Education, Culture and Sport service responsible for looking after the award winning toilets were presented with their certificates at the start of last week's committee meeting. In total the Council won 8 National Category Awards, a further 3 National Awards and a trophy for Thorr House in Thurso.
With young people facing increasing challenges in finding employment opportunities the Council is taking positive steps to help by launching an action plan to deliver on six key cross-service pledges. Speaking after today's Planning, Environment and Development Committee, Chairman Ian Ross said: "As a Council we are committed to young people and are being proactive in how we provide support.
The Scottish Government today announced that Scrabster will be 1 of 14 sites in Scotland's New Enterprise Areas. There are four sectoral areas, and a total of 14 sites within those areas.
The Highland Council is advising community groups, businesses, charities and anyone requiring a public entertainment licence that legislation changes come in to place from April 1st 2012. Currently, under the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, a licence is only required where the public pay either to take part or to watch the entertainment.
A scheme is to provide funding for projects that make a difference in local Scottish fishing communities, with up to £7.6 million to be shared out across 13 local authorities. £4.2 million is available under Axis 4 the European Fisheries Fund, which the councils involved need to co-finance in order to access.
At today's (Tuesday 17 January) meeting of The Highland Council's South Planning Application Committee members turned down an application for a 31 turbine wind farm on land at Dunachton, Alvie and Dalraddy Estates to the North West of Kincraig. The proposed development, know as Allt Duine, was lodged by RWE Npower Renewables Limited.
ScotRail is to provide an additional early morning service to ensure that Plockton High pupils can get to school - free of charge - while the Stromeferry bypass remains closed. From Monday 23 January, an 06.20 Inverness-Kyle of Lochalsh service will transport the children to Plockton before 09.00.
The Highland Council has welcomed the Scottish Government's announcement today (17 January) that three locations in the Highlands are being designated as enterprise areas. These locations are Scrabster in Caithness, Nigg, in Easter Ross and the Inverness campus at Beechwood.
The Highland Council has appointed chairmen to its two new area Planning Applications Committees. Councillor David Chisholm, Dingwall and Seaforth, is Chairman of the North PAC, Vice-Chairman is Councillor Audrey Sinclair, Wester Ross, Strathpeffer and Lochalsh.
Members of The Highland Council's Education, Culture and Sport Committee have agreed to bring forward £1.038 million of Capital Funding Projects to help offset an estimated £3.6 million projected underspend in the current financial year 2011/12. Approved projects in the Capital Programme which are being brought forward include works at: · Kingussie High School, Culloden Academy, Inverness and Tain Craighill Primary School; · inspection of craft, design and technical equipment in Secondary Schools; · works at Dingwall Leisure Centre; and · the purchase of a disabled access mini-bus at Lochaber High School.
At the start of this week's Education, Culture and Sport Committee at Highland council in Inverness, two senior pupils from Millburn Academy joined the Chairman, Councillor Bill Fernie, to make a presentation to Mr Bob Macdougall from Inverness. Bob has just retired from his post at Inverness Prison following 32 years' service.
Motorists are being advised that work begins in Inverness on Monday (16 January 2012) to replace the existing traffic signals at the Harbour Road/Shore Street junction, which have reached the end of their useful life. The Highland Council is removing the traffic signals and replacing them with a mini roundabout.
The Highland Council started work earlier this week on a notorious section of sub-standard lifeline road in Moidart - at Drynie Hill. During the contract, Monday through to Friday there will be a temporary road closure in place between 10am and 12:25pm and 1.10pm to 3:30 pm to safely carry out vital tree felling and blasting works.
All the information to stand in the Crofting Commission Elections can be found at http://www.highland.gov.uk/yourcouncil/elections/croftingcommission/.
The Highland Council will introduce a car and a passenger ferry service between North and South Strome on Monday to combat the impact of the closure of the A 890 Lochcarron - Kyle/Plockton road due to the danger of rockfalls. The timetables for the two ferry services, which will have connecting buses, will be confirmed on Friday.
For the second year in succession, The Highland Council is recommending a council house rent increase below the rate of inflation. The Housing and Social Work Committee is recommending an average increase of 1.9% which is 3.3% below inflation.
Pupils from the Lochcarron area will continue to travel to Plockton High School by train for the rest of this week as their normal route - via the A890 Stromeferry By-pass - remains closed due the threat of rockfall. On Monday 9 January 2012 46 pupils from the Lochcarron area travelled to Plockton High School by train.
The Highland Council is working to secure the services of a car and a passenger ferry - along with feeder bus services - which it will introduce next week as an emergency measure in the wake of the ongoing closure of the A 890 Stromeferry By-pass between Lochcarron and Plockton/Kyle. The ferries are needed because the Council has been advised by consultants that the road must remain closed to traffic until works to make the rock face safe are completed, following landslides at a point 100 yards west of the Avalanche Shelter, as there is still a significant risk of further rock falls affecting the road.
First Crofting Commission elections begin as Minister names appointed members. The starting gun for the first ever crofting elections was fired today with the official publication of the Notice of Elections.