Crunch meeting set between Inverness Harriers, Highland Council, High Life Highland and Scottish Athletics to discuss future of Queens Park running track
Inverness Harriers are set to meet various stakeholders over the future of Queens Park next month.
A structural report has shown that the shelf life of the Inverness track for high-level competition is short, and that the required remedial work to bring it back up to standard would cost in excess of £400,000.
However, the club say that the following response has been so positive that a meeting has been set for June 18 with facility operators High Life Highland, Scottish Athletics and Highland Council.
There, it is hoped that an action plan to fund repairs will be formulated with a view to fixes being implemented in 2026.
The club remain hopeful that a stay of execution on the track’s competition certification will be obtained to allow it still to host events next year, with Inverness Harriers president Charlie Forbes commenting: “We really have been overwhelmed by the reaction after the news broke that the structural survey the club paid for had revealed major problems.
“Apart from several members of the public contacting the club and High Life, two MSPs and several Highland councillors have also been in touch with us and have been incredibly supportive.
“In addition to that, I have had discussions with the operators which have been very positive.
“I have to say that we at the club feel a lot better about the situation now and we are cautiously feeling a bit more optimistic that the necessary repairs can be funded within a reasonable timescale.
“This is just too valuable a facility for the whole North to risk losing it.”
Last Saturday provided a prime illustration of the value of the Queens Park which in the morning hosted the South Highland Schools Primary Championships, which was attended by several hundred young athletes.
Then in the afternoon Inverness Harriers held an open meeting which was immediately followed by Megan Keith, supported by other international athletes, undergoing a training session in preparation for her representing Great Britain in the 10,000 metres at the Paris Olympics later in the summer.
