Earlier today we posted details of major social media discussions on possibilities that there may be less showies this year on the Links. That post is available here.
Now a petition from 2015 has appeared on line with a few extra signatures from 2016- that petition is can be viewed here.
Looks like our four Highland Councilllors that set the rates for the showies through the Common Good Fund might have something extra to discuss at their regular Monday morning meeting tomorrow.
13 comments:
As someone who lives in the fishertown I for one would welcome (from a very selfish point of view) the demise of the showies. Why? The arrival of the showies sometimes heralds a few days of summer when we have windows and doors open, but these are often closed when the stench of fumes from the showies generators wafts across. I can handle the boom, boom, boom of the music, the increasing amount of litter in my street and garden, and the occasional rowdie making his or her way home
I accept I'm an incomer having only been here for 40 happy years, but if the showies are indeed an income for Nairn why not reinvest some of their monies to give them a descent electrical supply so they don't have to run very expensive and not very green generators?
You could of course actually ask the Showies themselves?
The Showmen's Guild for Scotland is based in Glasgow.
Just because an individual has a bee in her or his bonnet doesn't make it true!
On a related note - does the Nairn Games not have it's own official Facebook page - all I can see is one hosted by the Elgin tug-o-war team.
More questions..is there going to be music in the beer tent the day after games. That was a jolly good idea.
Comments on Nairn Rocks suggest that the amount of money being spent is also an issue and so it would be good to know how big a change this would have for the showies. Also what are we going to not fund from the common good fund by doing this? Personally I think the fund could be funded differently. Set up a highland hospice style lottery for the fund to replace income streams so that we can lower rates (not just on this).
I wonder as to how much money the showies bring to the Nairn economy? There's the obvious rent paid to the Common Good and perhaps some custom for nearby hotels and bars, but beyond that?
If we reduce the rent that the showmen pay would the town just have less income
I appreciate that the showies bring a lot to pleasure for some folk and people travel for miles to attend.
If the town does genuinely benefit then perhaps there should be a drop in the rental to the Common Good fund but at the moment I cannot think of anything as most visitors are of an evening when shops etc are close
Just curious!
Let's not forget that the showie's are businesses, who take money off of people for using their services, they are not charities. Yes, they have to pay rent to use the Links but that's a price they have to pay, shopkeepers and other businesses have to pay rates, etc.
It's only recently that the showies have started coming for a whole fortnight previously they would come for a couple of days then go off to somewhere else then return for the Games weekend.
Maybe they need to look at their business model, Nairn is obviously too small a population to support them being here for a fortnight?
Games Day being a week late doesn't help matters. Pity it can't be kept on the 'first Saturday after the 12th'.
I seem to remember that the early showies had a pretty rubbish time last year due to the wet weather, although looking out of the window today not much has changed
Tend to think folk are more canny with any spare cash these days. Taking a family to the showies is an expensive business that many of us just can't afford
Maybe the showies should have incentives such as half price rides at certain times?
If they're having a hard time I would suggest it's not all down to how much they're charged to setup in Nairn to run their business
A small piece here on the Scottish showies - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-30375959
I investigated this story a year ago and threw the freedom of information act managed to get a copy of the extortionate prices our council charge the Showies for coming to Nairn, but the main point they have to charge that little bit more us because the council do not provide the amenities that the showmen are charged for example electricity so the showmen have no choice but to spend extra money on using there generators also the lack of enough water outlets
It doubt there are any show grounds whereby the local council provide sufficient electricity to run all of the showies in terms of rides and equipment. It wouldn't be economic for Nairn to invest in a substation plus cabling for an event that maybe lasts only two weeks, likewise improving the water infrastructure. The rides have become more sophisticated and power hungry, long gone are the likes of a helter skelter. Any spending would have to be recouped by the council that would just lad to even higher charges for the showmen
Judging from this article from 2011 Scottish showmen are finding it hard in general even back then. Rising fuel costs and an audience not wishing to spend as much money as they once did
http://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/scotland-s-4-000-showfolk-are-finding-times-hard-but-all-are-determined-to-keep-their-wagons-rolling-1-1667111
Changed times. Maybe Pokemon Go is more attractive than a shot on the dive bomber!
Then why will the council not reduce the rates
@dr-grigor
Why should the council reduce the rates, it just means they'd have to raise the money elsewhere, any suggestions?
And as has been said already why shouldn't other businesses that are struggling enjoy cheaper business rates as well
Reading the articles linked on this thread it would seem as though the showies are just not as popular as they were and are in a downward spiral for various reasons. Obviously they're seen as a tradition and will be missed but should we be suggesting subsidising them when money is so tight and many services are under threat?
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