Council backs regeneration of Inverness city centre

The Leader of The Highland Council Drew Hendry and Leader of the City of Inverness Area Committee have given an assurance that tackling anti-social behaviour in Inverness City Centre is a top priority for the Council.

They gave this commitment at a meeting this week with  senior police officers and representatives of Inverness Business Improvement District to progress discussions on a proposed plan of action to more effectively deal with the issue and ensure the city centre is a  welcoming place for visitors and residents.

Councillors Hendry and Brown have met with Inverness Business Improvement District (BID) on a number of occasions recently to discuss the best ways of combatting anti-social behaviour.  A further meeting is being held later this month to continue discussions..

Councillor Hendry said: “By any standard, Inverness city centre is a safe place to visit, shop and do business.  It is a major attraction and we want to build on this friendly, clean and welcoming image.

“Like  any city, we do experience a degree of anti-social behaviour in the city centre. This is  unacceptable to businesses, to shoppers and to visitors to Inverness.  We need to focus on removing this.  That is why we are now working with local businesses, via BID, and the police on this.

Councillor Brown agreed:  “Inverness has many attractions, with an increasingly vibrant city centre.  The business community is eager to provide the best possible experience for shoppers and visitors and we can play our part by working with the police to keep our streets as free as possible of anti-social behaviour. This is a priority area of work for the Council.”

Inverness BID Chairman Craig Duncan said: “We welcome the focus of the Council on this issue and look forward to working with them and the police to develop an effective action plan.”