A 1OOO houses??? This then is a proposal for a new village!!! & it would have an impact on the whole of the Nairn`s infrastructure such as schools, doctors & dentist etc etc. Nairn is already bursting at the seams with recent housing developments & the last thing we need is even more houses!!! I feel that this proposed development is in danger of being rushed through without a proper public consultation with residents in the area & the community as a whole. The drawing gives very little details of the proposed site & gives no clue about where the proposed buildings would be & a proposed development of this size has to have proper face to face meetings with the public & developers, not just an online zoom meeting. The zoom meeting itself is an insult as lots of people don`t have the technology & some are not tech savvy to be involved in this way ..... so that`s not fair!
It's things like this which make me really miss the Nairnshire. I would love to read Ian Bain's opinion on it. His overview of these sort of developments was incomparable.
We, as residents of Nairn. need to consider very seriously our environmental landscape. If the bypass does go ahead, it will be very close to the town as Springfield want to build private housing on the fields, albeit 25% would be affordable, on the eastern periphery of Nairn. Just think about that for a moment, the circular route many cyclists take leaving town on the Broadley side to the Househill side will disappear by being blocked off. Fair enough it will be a long time in happening. But it would destroy the landscape. some folk who have a home in the rural vicinity of Nairn would find themselves overlooking a bypass and a huge housing development/
Me? Well I will be enjoying the fields of Househill for a bit longer, daily watching the Kestrels and their young hunting on a summer evening, glorifying in witnessing a Stoats crossing occasionally from Balmakeith Business Park over to the field next to Sainsbury's, and of course the very special sightings of Barn owls and Pine Martens in this area. All within a few hundred yards of the town. I, and others have been lucky to take pleasure in this beautiful part of Nairn for many years, and in the time I have left, I will be fighting to keep it that way. So, you might see me camping out in a flowery tent soon on those very fields, and if you feel inclined, please come and join me.
Facing this proposed development from Springfield, how is our community going to challenge it?
Who is going to challenge it, are any of our Ward Councillors prepared to step up?
Will the residents of Nairn be willing to get on board and take part in the work required to cope with a planning application of this magnitude?
The pressures on the town right now are massive and I feel our very existence is under threat. Lack of funding, parking charges, the by-pass...if it ever happens, now this housing proposal. It seems to me that we has been dealt very rough treatment from the planners over the years with the lack of consideration for infrastructure.
This definitely would have a negative impact on Nairn, and we can't expect any help from The Highland Council because they will be pushing for it. We will require professional assistance combined with a tremendous community involvement!
I think it should be stressed this is not a planning application nor is this site currently allocated or proposed to be allocated by the council for housing (or any other use for that matter). Also this consultation is not beening run by the council and is instead a private housing developer pushing their own agenda.
Springfield Properties Lodged their planning application on the 17th August 2021, sent out a letter dated 24th August and we received it 27th August. Five days in the post from Elgin? with a zoom meeting on the 2nd September....two days time and hardly anyone uses zoom. We want a public meeting face to face. NO MORE BUILDING!!!!!!!!
I moved to Balmakeith 8 months ago and am shocked at the way Springfield Properties are trying to push out their agenda. We have been led to understand that the field between the river and A939 was bought for 136K by the Nairn Farmer's society for the annual Nairn Farmer's Show. Springfield have seem to have included that in their proposal? and a school? on beautiful peaceful farmland? that we all look out upon. The traffic congestion in Nairn has been largely exacerbated by the excessive building in Lochloy without adequate provision for access to the A96. I urge people to stand up and speak out otherwise Nairn will just be suffocated and us with it.
“OH BOY another “LOCHLOY” for our lovely Nairn???? Nairn was once the Bournemouth of the North back in the day. It still is, I am sure most of you will agree. Personally, I LOVE Nairn. I lived in near Culloden for 40 years and have seen how the land has been eaten up. The history has been forgotten. Tour buses racing around small roads just so the passengers can “see” where Outlander was filmed. Nairn was and still nice but we need to stand up for who we are: Nairn appears to be property developer’s preferred parasitic host to sucking the life out of a town or rather drowning it in exhaust fumes, as we are all too familiar with in the last year or so. A thousand houses in Lochloy with a promise of a road to join the A96 further out. So that was never done of course. What do Springfield intend to do with the overflow for the cemetary, which has or was earmarked by Highland Council. A little walk there will show you it is overgrown and unkempt and no doubt possibly no longer belongs to the Council. As a resident of Balmakeith Park, I ask other people to please be interested enough to stand up for our lovely town. As we know it.
Re some of the above. Yes the new Farmers' Showfield is still going to be the field closest to the River and the other side of the Grantown Road that is on the flood plain would also be amenity land under this proposal. There is a drawing of what the proposal might look like in The Nairn edition of the Inverness Courier this week. Some of the comments have been edited - Freedom of speech comes with responsibilities and you have to cool it sometimes to get comments on the Gurn· Whatever your thoughts, for or against this development, remember it is one thing to sound off online it is another to actually register on the Highland Council e-planning site and make official representations.
There is no facility for comments on the Highland Council e-planning site at the moment Graisg, there is a pre- planning notice which is a live application, but not a full planning application at the moment. Comments should be sent to Springfield who are holding the consultation and Nairn River Community Council who are the statutory consultee for the area which would be most affected by this proposed development.
Many of us are aware of Iain's opinions on the by-pass, from articles in the Nairnshire Telegraph in the recent past, it can't come quickly enough for him. This proposed development if approved would be built long before any by-pass was delivered and currently there is no guarantee that it will ever happen. The traffic congestion is unbearable in Nairn at times and will only get worse if there are more cars added to what we have to cope with already. We have reached the limit here in Nairn, this huge development would change our town for ever, to it's detriment.
I would like to point out that in The Inner Moray Firth Local Development Plan(2) Main Issues Report, January 2021, page 202 (area NA09) the area in question has been marked down as `NON-PREFFERED` The reasons The Planning Commitee give are:- "Whilst the large site put forward at Granny Barbour Road compares reasonably well against other large site options in terms of viability, there are certain factors which result in it being Non-Preferred. These include the scale of development proposed exceeds what is required, it requires a relatively high level of new infrastructure and the areas at risk of flooding push development to the outer reaches of the site furthest removed from the existing settlement. Land to the east of the retail park is non preferred as further retail uses could have an adverse impact on the town centre. Whilst housing development could help to provide a more attractive entrance into the town, it is distant from the town centre and key facilities. Balmakeith industrial estate is largely built out, with only a few vacant plots remaining and as such any development allocation is not considered to be required."
My question is, why is this `NON-PREFFERED` site even being brought up again only 8 months later???
Sorry can't change dates on comments and re unknown comment including "seemingly the planning committee rejected the planning proposal [...]". 'Seemingly' not much good here, can you provide source and further details please. Here at the Gurn we don't have time to look ourselves.
"My question is, why is this `NON-PREFFERED` site even being brought up again only 8 months later?" Our question would be: have Highland Council snookered themselves in putting forward Sandown as the only major site for preferred development? Could this be seen as unfair to other developers and landowners? If this application goes down the appeal route will this all be taken up and the entrails of Highland Council involvement in Sandown be dissected by the men in suits that might well appear for a week or two sitting in the community centre again?
"Land to the east of the retail park is non preferred as further retail uses could have an adverse impact on the town centre. Whilst housing development could help to provide a more attractive entrance into the town, it is distant from the town centre and key facilities."
And what would everyone say if Aldi or Tesco put in an application? lol
"And what would everyone say if Aldi or Tesco put in an application? lol"
Erm ... in my opinion there`s a hell of a difference between an Aldi or Tesco compared to a new village with 650-1000 houses built on beautiful agricultural land which we should cherish ... you can`t compare the two!!
Iain Bain (Nairnshire Telegraph) is giving a lecture next week as part of the Book and Arts Fest. Although his lecture is on the subject of Nairn's shoreline, I'm sure someone could sneak in a wee question about the A96 ;-) Tuesday at 6pm at the Community Centre £10
Could we possibly have your better half commenting here on planning issues she is quite knowledgeable on such matters, you might try asking her what non preferred site means
I understand that the Chair of Nairn River Community Council has requested a face to face consultation be arranged in addition to the two online meetings which Springfield are holding.
26 comments:
Oh no, not another one!
Looks like it will be 9 hours to get through Nairn if this passes.
A 1OOO houses??? This then is a proposal for a new village!!! & it would have an impact on the whole of the Nairn`s infrastructure such as schools, doctors & dentist etc etc. Nairn is already bursting at the seams with recent housing developments & the last thing we need is even more houses!!!
I feel that this proposed development is in danger of being rushed through without a proper public consultation with residents in the area & the community as a whole. The drawing gives very little details of the proposed site & gives no clue about where the proposed buildings would be & a proposed development of this size has to have proper face to face meetings with the public & developers, not just an online zoom meeting. The zoom meeting itself is an insult as lots of people don`t have the technology & some are not tech savvy to be involved in this way ..... so that`s not fair!
The area in question is approximately the same size as the whole town!
It's things like this which make me really miss the Nairnshire. I would love to read Ian Bain's opinion on it. His overview of these sort of developments was incomparable.
We, as residents of Nairn. need to consider very seriously our environmental landscape. If the bypass does go ahead, it will be very close to the town as Springfield want to build private housing on the fields, albeit 25% would be affordable, on the eastern periphery of Nairn.
Just think about that for a moment, the circular route many cyclists take leaving town on the Broadley side to the Househill side will disappear by being blocked off. Fair enough it will be a long time in happening. But it would destroy the landscape. some folk who have a home in the rural vicinity of Nairn would find themselves overlooking a bypass and a huge housing development/
Me? Well I will be enjoying the fields of Househill for a bit longer, daily watching the Kestrels and their young hunting on a summer evening, glorifying in witnessing a Stoats crossing occasionally from Balmakeith Business Park over to the field next to Sainsbury's, and of course the very special sightings of Barn owls and Pine Martens in this area. All within a few hundred yards of the town. I, and others have been lucky to take pleasure in this beautiful part of Nairn for many years, and in the time I have left, I will be fighting to keep it that way. So, you might see me camping out in a flowery tent soon on those very fields, and if you feel inclined, please come and join me.
Anonymous @1:58 PM
Dear Sir.Madam,
I agree fully with your comments.
Facing this proposed development from Springfield, how is our community going to challenge it?
Who is going to challenge it, are any of our Ward Councillors prepared to step up?
Will the residents of Nairn be willing to get on board and take part in the work required to cope with a planning application of this magnitude?
The pressures on the town right now are massive and I feel our very existence is under threat. Lack of funding, parking charges, the by-pass...if it ever happens, now this housing proposal.
It seems to me that we has been dealt very rough treatment from the planners over the years with the lack of consideration for infrastructure.
This definitely would have a negative impact on Nairn, and we can't expect any help from The Highland Council because they will be pushing for it. We will require professional assistance combined with a tremendous community involvement!
I think it should be stressed this is not a planning application nor is this site currently allocated or proposed to be allocated by the council for housing (or any other use for that matter). Also this consultation is not beening run by the council and is instead a private housing developer pushing their own agenda.
Thanks for all comments, still considering a few.
Springfield Properties Lodged their planning application on the 17th August 2021, sent out a letter dated 24th August and we received it 27th August. Five days in the post from Elgin? with a zoom meeting on the 2nd September....two days time and hardly anyone uses zoom. We want a public meeting face to face. NO MORE BUILDING!!!!!!!!
I moved to Balmakeith 8 months ago and am shocked at the way Springfield Properties are trying to push out their agenda. We have been led to understand that the field between the river and A939 was bought for 136K by the Nairn Farmer's society for the annual Nairn Farmer's Show. Springfield have seem to have included that in their proposal? and a school? on beautiful peaceful farmland? that we all look out upon. The traffic congestion in Nairn has been largely exacerbated by the excessive building in Lochloy without adequate provision for access to the A96. I urge people to stand up and speak out otherwise Nairn will just be suffocated and us with it.
“OH BOY another “LOCHLOY” for our lovely Nairn???? Nairn was once the Bournemouth of the North back in the day. It still is, I am sure most of you will agree. Personally, I LOVE Nairn. I lived in near Culloden for 40 years and have seen how the land has been eaten up. The history has been forgotten. Tour buses racing around small roads just so the passengers can “see” where Outlander was filmed. Nairn was and still nice but we need to stand up for who we are: Nairn appears to be property developer’s preferred parasitic host to sucking the life out of a town or rather drowning it in exhaust fumes, as we are all too familiar with in the last year or so. A thousand houses in Lochloy with a promise of a road to join the A96 further out. So that was never done of course.
What do Springfield intend to do with the overflow for the cemetary, which has or was earmarked by Highland Council. A little walk there will show you it is overgrown and unkempt and no doubt possibly no longer belongs to the Council. As a resident of Balmakeith Park, I ask other people to please be interested enough to stand up for our lovely town. As we know it.
Re some of the above.
Yes the new Farmers' Showfield is still going to be the field closest to the River and the other side of the Grantown Road that is on the flood plain would also be amenity land under this proposal. There is a drawing of what the proposal might look like in The Nairn edition of the Inverness Courier this week.
Some of the comments have been edited - Freedom of speech comes with responsibilities and you have to cool it sometimes to get comments on the Gurn·
Whatever your thoughts, for or against this development, remember it is one thing to sound off online it is another to actually register on the Highland Council e-planning site and make official representations.
There is no facility for comments on the Highland Council e-planning site at the moment Graisg, there is a pre- planning notice which is a live application, but not a full planning application at the moment. Comments should be sent to Springfield who are holding the consultation and Nairn River Community Council who are the statutory consultee for the area which would be most affected by this proposed development.
Anonymous @7:39 AM
Many of us are aware of Iain's opinions on the by-pass, from articles in the Nairnshire Telegraph in the recent past, it can't come quickly enough for him. This proposed development if approved would be built long before any by-pass was delivered and currently there is no guarantee that it will ever happen.
The traffic congestion is unbearable in Nairn at times and will only get worse if there are more cars added to what we have to cope with already.
We have reached the limit here in Nairn, this huge development would change our town for ever, to it's detriment.
Graisg, Could you please change the date on my last comment to the 2nd of September.
Thanks,
NAIRN OUR TOWN
Dear editor,
I would like to point out that in The Inner Moray Firth Local Development Plan(2) Main Issues Report, January 2021, page 202 (area NA09) the area in question has been marked down as `NON-PREFFERED`
The reasons The Planning Commitee give are:- "Whilst the large site put forward at Granny Barbour Road compares reasonably well against other large site options in terms of viability, there are certain factors which result in it being Non-Preferred.
These include the scale of development proposed exceeds what is required, it requires a relatively high level of new infrastructure and the areas at risk of flooding push development to the outer reaches of the site furthest removed from the existing settlement.
Land to the east of the retail park is non preferred as further retail uses could have an adverse impact on the town centre. Whilst housing development could help to provide a more attractive entrance into the town, it is distant from the town centre and key facilities.
Balmakeith industrial estate is largely built out, with only a few vacant plots remaining and as such any development allocation is not considered to be required."
My question is, why is this `NON-PREFFERED` site even being brought up again only 8 months later???
Sorry can't change dates on comments and re unknown comment including "seemingly the planning committee rejected the planning proposal [...]". 'Seemingly' not much good here, can you provide source and further details please. Here at the Gurn we don't have time to look ourselves.
"My question is, why is this `NON-PREFFERED` site even being brought up again only 8 months later?"
Our question would be: have Highland Council snookered themselves in putting forward Sandown as the only major site for preferred development? Could this be seen as unfair to other developers and landowners? If this application goes down the appeal route will this all be taken up and the entrails of Highland Council involvement in Sandown be dissected by the men in suits that might well appear for a week or two sitting in the community centre again?
@ Nairn our town. Can't change date on original comment but can put info up again for you:
Let's all join the meeting at 4:00 PM on the 2nd of September and tell Springfield, in no uncertain terms, where to go....ELSEWHERE!
"Land to the east of the retail park is non preferred as further retail uses could have an adverse impact on the town centre. Whilst housing development could help to provide a more attractive entrance into the town, it is distant from the town centre and key facilities."
And what would everyone say if Aldi or Tesco put in an application? lol
"And what would everyone say if Aldi or Tesco put in an application? lol"
Erm ... in my opinion there`s a hell of a difference between an Aldi or Tesco compared to a new village with 650-1000 houses built on beautiful agricultural land which we should cherish ... you can`t compare the two!!
Iain Bain (Nairnshire Telegraph) is giving a lecture next week as part of the Book and Arts Fest. Although his lecture is on the subject of Nairn's shoreline, I'm sure someone could sneak in a wee question about the A96 ;-)
Tuesday at 6pm at the Community Centre £10
Dear Graisg
Could we possibly have your better half commenting here on planning issues she is quite knowledgeable on such matters, you might try asking her what non preferred site means
I understand that the Chair of Nairn River Community Council has requested a face to face consultation be arranged in addition to the two online meetings which Springfield are holding.
Happy planning submissions to all the unknowns out there - have to dash, nipping up to the retail park for some more out of town shopping.
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