Nairn Bowling Club plans for new clubhouse at Nairn Showfield are granted permission — with Nairn councillors sitting out the debate after bias accusations
The debated plans to build a new clubhouse at the Nairn Farmers’ Showfield were given the green light by councillors this morning — despite the absence of any Nairn representatives in the room during the debate, after a formal complaint was lodged against them by the group opposing the development.
A planning application for a two-storey clubhouse, two bowling greens and a car park lodged by Nairn Bowling club in late 2024 was approved at this morning’s South Planning Applications Committee after it had been recommended for approval.
The decision came with little to no debate in the room despite the fact that the application had received more than 200 objections — many of which had been submitted over the past few days, and with the two community councils in town objecting to the proposal.
Nairn councillors taking part in the meeting, Paul Oldham — who is the chair of the committee — as well as Barbara Jarvie left the room ahead of the discussion after declaring an interest in the application.
Declaring his interest at the start of the meeting, Councillor Oldham said he had been “implicitly accused of being biased” by Save Our Showfield, the group currently opposing the application.
Mr Oldham said: “As members will know from an email they have received from Save Our Showfield, I am being implicitly accused of bias in relation to this application, and a formal complaint has been made against me and other ward members to Highland Council.
“A subsequent email, which a number of you will have seen, explicitly threatens to address the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO).
“I actively refuse the accusations, but until the complaint has been determined, I think it would be unwise for me to take part in determining this application.”
Councillor Jarvie was also prevented from participating in the discussion for the same reason.
Sitting as interim chair, Councillor Bill Lobban said he found “concerning” that members of the committee had been “forced into declaring an interest because their impartiality has been called into question”.
“Declarations of interest should be a matter for individual members and they should not feel coerced into declaring it.”
Other councillors speaking during the discussion of this item echoed the concern for a situation in which no local member was left to debate the item.
The main concerns against the application included fears that the new bowling club’s facilities could bring an unsustainable amount of traffic to the area and potentially be a threat to road safety on Waverley Road and other surrounding streets.
A traffic survey was provided as part of the application process — however the group disputed this, saying it had been done outwith peak times and without taking into account the amount of pedestrians and bikes using the road and narrow pavement.
The number of people visiting the club and causing potential disturbance to local residents was also raised, as well as the loss of a green space in the area.
The club maintained that the numbers attending the club would not be causing disturbance to the residents and that they aim to provide improved facilities for their growing membership and space for community groups to use.
Most councillors speaking during the discussion echoed Mr Lobban’s concerns, sharing their disappointment that no Nairn councillor was there to represent their area during the debate.
During the debate, Caol and Mallaig councillor Liz Saggers inquired about the possibility of calling for to the application requiring the bowling club to be built as a one-storey building rather than two; however, there was no policy based on those concerns on which to base grounds for refusal of the application.
It was also said that representations from the public had been sent up until the day before the meeting, with many still being uploaded on the planning portal.
In the end, the recommendation to approve the application was upheld.