If you haven't seen it yet get hold of this week's edition of the Nairnshire in which Cllr Liz MacDonald accuses Nairn River Community Council of not supporting housing for people on the waiting list. Full details in this week's dead tree edition of the Nairnshire Telegraph (aka as the Leopold Street Thunderer).
This observer must confess that he wasn't at the last River CC meeting so doesn't know what exactly went on but we do know that members of the CC care passionately about housing and many other social issues in fact many of them get off their backsides and can be seen manning foodbank collection stalls in the High Street and elsewhere. I know them all personally, they want to build a better Nairn and there is no way they don't want to see social housing built in our town - I trust each and every one of them implicitly to act with their hearts and instincts, life experiences and collective wisdom for the best interests of Nairn.
So fellow Gurnites we kind of think that Liz is a little off the mark here. And let's remember quite often what Highland Council want is not what dovetails exactly with the community and River CC are quite within their rights to point out any flaws with Council policies if they think they reflect genuine anxieties from the general public.
So fellow Gurnites we kind of think that Liz is a little off the mark here. And let's remember quite often what Highland Council want is not what dovetails exactly with the community and River CC are quite within their rights to point out any flaws with Council policies if they think they reflect genuine anxieties from the general public.
River CC and many others recently objected to a planning application for 31 houses on the former Morganti patch on Forres Road. Now even the developers must have come to the conclusion that this was a bit of an over development and have pulled that application and are going to submit another one with less houses. Was it this objection that has attracted Liz's ire?
Why should people that live in social housing have to live in such over developments. They deserve houses with a bit of space like everyone else. Now over five years ago Highland Council came up with plans for houses at Sandown. Why has no social housing been built there yet? Just what is holding Highland Council up here? The town owns the land so surely with a bit of official imagination some device could be created to ensure that the local community has a say in who lives there and not just the high heid yins in Inverness.
We would respectfully suggest to Liz that she was a bit over the top with what she had to say to our local paper, please stop having a go at folk who care passionately about our community and give their time free of charge to try and highlight and remedy issues affecting us all.
Homes for Nairn folk on Sandown please - ASP - get working on it Highland Council!
