Inverness Port reveals plans for heritage trail
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A HERITAGE trail based on the history and environment of Inverness’s harbour area could be created as part of a new Maritime Quarter encouraging more visitors and locals to visit and enjoy the city waterfront.
A first image of how the new trail might look, complete with interpretive boards, dedicated cycle paths and landscaping, was unveiled yesterday as Inverness Harbour Trust revealed its annual results for 2017 and outlined plans for future development at the Port of Inverness.
Chief executive Sinclair Browne revealed that the harbour authority had engaged a Glasgow firm of landscape architects to look at the possibility of creating a maritime heritage trail between the Ness rail bridge, the site of the former Inverness Harbour Office, and Inverness Marina as part of an Inverness Maritime Quarter.
The architect’s initial report has just been completed and the authority now intend to formally engage with Highland Council, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and other stakeholders on their vision for the trail as part of wider developments, including proposals for the Harbour Gait area next to the marina.
"We are very keen to build links with the city centre and create what we call the Maritime Quarter because you see a lot of tourists walking down the area and you have Cromwell Tower, and that’s about it," said Mr Browne.
"If we can create some form of visual interpretation and give it a nice feel, it just increases their experience."
Mr Browne acknowledged the trail would pass through quite an industrialised rather than scenic area, but added: "If you look at places in Glasgow like Speirs Wharf, that goes through a very industrial location and they have put in hard and soft landscaping and a marked trail that goes on for about a couple of miles. And they don’t have the waterfront we have because the destination’s the Forth and Clyde Canal. There’s no reason why we can’t do the same with a shorter area."
As part of the creation of the new quarter, the harbour authority is also relaunching proposals for Harbour Gait in a bid to attract more commercial interest in the area.
"If there’s some leisure activity there as well, then we would happily look at that – and maybe even a hotel," said Mr Browne.
"It’s all linked together in the masterplan."
He added that consideration was also being given to further development of the small sized cruise ship market. Inverness has already had some success in attracting smaller expedition-sized cruise ships with a passenger capacity of up to 100 passengers, and this was an area the harbour was keen to develop he said.
"That’s an area we are specifically focusing on, but these things don’t happen overnight and we’re probably looking at the 2019/2020 cruises.
"It’s just about creating awareness. It was the same with the renewables sector, but if you sell it right, people will come. And we have something different to offer. We’re right next to Loch Ness, Cawdor Castle and all these other areas as well.
"We don’t see it as stealing from other ports. It’s very complementary. There’s a market there for everybody."
The meeting also heard from Inverness Harbour Trust chairman Angus Mackenzie, who revealed that turnover at the harbour up to March 2017 had gone down slightly on 2016 figures to £1.423 million from £1.506 million, but this had followed a record turnover at the harbour and the outlook remained positive.
