"SCOTLAND'S Housing Expo made a £514,000 loss on running costs, meaning the organisers cannot afford to return the £100,000 of taxpayers' money provided at the 11th hour to underwrite the event."
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There were those that were warning it would be hard for the Expo to make any money and others that said that if it were Scotland's Expo then Scotland should pay for it rather than just the Highlands. Maybe the Expo was a success in other ways but financially it looks a bit of a mess. Now those on Highland Council that voted for it seem to have a digital uprising on their hands. Many Courier readers regularly express their disappointment with the Council on the Courier site but now that tangible anger seems to have increased by several notches if the comments on the Courier web page are anything to go by. In years gone by this type of event would have passed by without so much uproar but now with cuts going to the marrow let alone the bone every penny spent at Glenurquhart Road comes under forensic scrutiny from the public and the internet gives them the tools to have their say. More from the article here.
UPDATE - that Courier article has now received 55 comments (31/1) and very angry comments they are too.
UPDATE - that Courier article has now received 55 comments (31/1) and very angry comments they are too.
The Highland Housing Fair enterprise could have provided a wonderful opportunity for the community to get involved in planning; to see an innovative project through from beginning to end. But the great potential for public involvement that was afforded was never realised. Parties involved were struggling against unrealistic timescales and difficulties with site selection; focusing on their own agendas and taking related opportunities; and I believe that the public involvement aspects suffered as a result.
ReplyDeleteIt seems that whilst there are similarities between the Highland and the Finnish models – non-profit making, the design competition - two very important aspects, co-operative working with the ‘host area’ (possibly the community in which the greenfield site was located) and personal involvement of future occupants in the design process, were not demonstrated
You can find out more about Finnish housing fairs at
http://www.asuntomessut.fi/yleistieto/en_GB/general
http://asuntomessut.vaasa.fi/Default.aspx?id=558491
It's worth noting also that a hefty chunk of the money which the Highland Council so generously chipped into this turkey of a project came from the Inverness Common Good Fund.
ReplyDeleteNairn residents should remember this impressive example of the Council's approach to managing and spending Common Good money when that subject next comes up locally.