Deveron 0, Nairn 1
Great news reported on the Gurn – the current application by Deveron Homes for the Sandown development has been rejected.
I managed to get to the start of the meeting, but it soon began to overrun and I had to leave to get back to work.
I’ve got to admit to feeling pessimistic when I was there, not least when both the developer and objectors were allocated a relatively short time frame to speak, and there were somewhere in the region of 12 people looking to speak, representing various interest groups.
It looked like it was going to be another sad chapter of developers steam rolling resident concerns.
The fact that the current application is rejected shows that local councillors are certainly listening to the concerns of the residents of Nairn.
Personally I still think a development at Sandown can be a very good idea – and I think a lot of people really aren’t objecting to some form of intelligent development at Sandown.
However, the density and scale that Deveron was proposing was so out of character with the current town landscape, not least the proposed multi-storey buildings, that it was hard to see how Nairn could benefit – especially in terms of trying to improve its reputation as a tourist destination.
Even though there is a chance I would have looked to move some part of my company to the new business centre, inevitably if I anchor my operations in Nairn, then Nairn can’t be perceived to be in decline. Nairn has to look attractive to build a business in.
Of course, it does put Nairn in something of a pickle as well – I’m under the impression that Sandy Park was key in engineering the sale of Sandown land for the sake of the new community centre.
And yet he is reported to have recommended the planning application be refused. Either he’s confident that a new and improved application can be made that can satisfy most criticisms, or else there are other options on the table that will ensure Nairn does not lose out.
A special mention also needs making of Samantha Brown and John Mackie, who put together a most excellent presentation on paper for the audience to read, laying out a whole string of concerns founded on existing local planning requirements.
In the meantime, it’ll be interesting to see how this whole situation develops – will Deveron be able to rewrite their plans to something far more in line with the original local plan? Or will the development need to go back out to tender?
Either way, it’s a victory for the residents of Nairn in having their concerns properly listened to and addressed, and I can only hope our councillors continue to treat their representation of our views as seriously as we expect them to.
For those who were there, it was probably a moment to remember. 
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