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Eyesore petrol station in Nairn to get new lease of life


By Donald Wilson

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The derelict filling station has stood empty since 2018.
The derelict filling station has stood empty since 2018.

A derelict filling station at one of the main entrance points to Nairn is to get a new lease of life.

Formerly Grant’s Garage, the premises on Forres Road have lain empty since the retiral in 2018 of Nairn brothers Ian (81) and George Grant (79), who took over from their father Peter.

He bought the premises in the 1950s and moved the family from Burghead to a new bungalow built on the site.

For 70 years the business has operated in road bulk haulage, at one time with a fleet of 10 lorries, and as a filling station and garage.

The main workshop and house has been bought by Ross’s Garage of Culloden with the workshop to be used as a breakdown depot.

The new owner of the filling station, Elgin businessman Halil Skepi, said: "It’s taken a bit of time to get this far because the site had to be sold in different lots and there was a lot of paperwork.

"I’ve got someone to operate the filling station as a car wash and valeting service meantime so we can get it back into use and get some income.

"But in the long-term the plan is to double the footprint of the building and create a café at the front and the valeting and car wash will move to the rear of the building."

Mr Skepi says a lot of servicing work, including water and electricity, is being undertaken now to accommodate the café, which he thinks could take about two years to start.

"The aim is to get some income from the site and get it into use now," he said.

"The forecourt will be used meantime for car washing and valeting but that will become car parking if everything goes well with the café plans.

"We have to remove the fuel tanks at the side of the building and ensure the site is not contaminated before we start building.

"Our architects are working on that of course, and all the necessary permissions have to be sought."

The operator of the car wash, Claudiu Popesco, is from Romania and has worked in the UK for six years.

Last week he was continuing with work on the internal and external fitting and refurbishment of the building.

Claudiu Popescu will be the business operator for the car wash/valet facility.
Claudiu Popescu will be the business operator for the car wash/valet facility.

"I’m looking forward to getting the business up and running," he said.

"We will have four members of staff providing hand washes and valeting and I am hopeful it will be a valuable addition to the services available in Nairn."

The business will run seven days a week and Mr Popesco is confident it will fill a gap in the market in Nairn.

Lucy Harding, Manager of Nairn Business Improvement District was delighted at the developments.

"It is always nice to welcome new businesses to Nairn," she said.

"We look forward to them joining Nairn BID and hope they become involved in the local business community.

"We wish the new owner of the property well with his venture, and his plans for a café at Nairn’s eastern gateway will be an exciting additional facility for both locals and visitors."

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