Council 'disrespect' prompts businessman to set up Inverness City Alliance
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FRUSTRATION with Highland Council’s “blinkered” vision for Academy Street has prompted a leading local businessman to spearhead a new association dedicated to making local voices heard.
The Inverness City Alliance is the brainchild of Scott Murray of Cru Holdings, which operates several hospitality and travel businesses, who says of the council “if they are not going to be our voice then we have to find our own”.
A passionate opponent of the plans for Academy Street that have divided the city, Mr Murray said the local authority’s approach to infrastructure is scary and disrespectful.
The website went live earlier today along with social media accounts to spread the word and build momentum about the project.
To wrestle with that, the alliance says infrastructure “guiding principles” should meet certain criteria including making it easier, not harder to visit the city centre; changes should encourage passing trade; much more EV charging points, vehicle access, and parking; and infrastructure is designed for local needs not just because external funding is available.
Asked what prompted the move, Mr Murray said: “I think the fact that we all attended a consultation with the council on Academy Street and for them to make promises that they then broke.
“I genuinely don’t believe they see businesses as anything other than a nuisance. I don’t think
they see the economic benefits that small businesses bring to the Highland economy. I just don’t think they put two and two together but if they do then they have not demonstrated that.
“They see their pot of cash [for Academy Street] and they see their way of getting to it and that is
their blinkered vision – they have got that in their sights and that is all that matters and that is what is scary.”
Highland Council wants to widen walkways and increase active travel on Academy Street in a bid to improve the city centre but plans to cut vehicle traffic by 75 per cent on what is one of Scotland’s most polluted streets.
It has led to some businesses arguing it will be damaging to trade while active travel activists say the plans do not go far enough.
