Inverness - the City of today

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How about this then

[Scarlet Pimple]

When I was a boy some fun was made of a lady who called these pictures "Muriels". And I asked my

mother ..."Muriel's what?" . Amidst laughter, the answer was not really repeatable.

[JockWatt]

13 hours ago, Scarlet Pimple said:

When I was a boy some fun was made of a lady who called these pictures "Muriels". And I asked my

mother ..."Muriel's what?" . Amidst laughter, the answer was not really repeatable.

Aye SP - and what difference a " ' " makes - eh ?.

[Charles Bannerman]

On ‎04‎/‎07‎/‎2016 at 0:28 PM, IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER said:

How about this then

Yes, I wonder what will happen to that particular "muriel" of the Midmills building in the current transition from the old Culduthel building to the new Culduthel one? It currently sits outside the Rector's office in the outgoing premises and I am sure a location for it has been found in the new school. Presumably it will need to be taken away panel by panel and reassembled. Other artworks also needing to be moved are the Millennium Mural on the exterior wall and the school crest above the front door. There is also a large War Memorial to be transported in addition to Dux boards going back to the early 1800s.

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Kelpies in Sneck ?

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How the City Centre was planned to look in the 60's

[Charles Bannerman]

According to the plaque, this was a proposed redevelopment of Bridge St - presumably one of the proposals from the early 60s. I have to say that it looks slightly better than what eventually went there, but that would be to damn it with faint praise!

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Of Course - THE PERFECT ANSWER ??

BENCHES on Inverness High Street have been removed in a bid to tackle anti-social behaviour in the city centre.

The seats, which sit directly outside fast food chain McDonald’s, have been removed for a two-month trial period to try toand clear the amount of people who gather in the area creating disturbances.

With the tourist season in full swing, Inverness Central councillors are determined to solve the problem before it gets any worse.

McDonald’s franchisee and chairman of Inverness Business Improvement District (Bid) Craig Duncan has already noticed an improvement in the area.

“It’s just made an unbelievably big difference to the ambience and to the feel of that part of the city,” he said.

“We are packed with tourists and it has absolutely transformed that part of the High Street.

“I want to thank the councillors who have backed this measure and made the brave decision to make it happen. It has been long awaited by the public and businesses in the area. It’s a tremendous move.”

The benches were removed last week as part of a two-month trial.

There is divided opinion among councillors, though, about whether removing the benches is the best course of action.

Cllr Bet McAllister is not convinced that taking away the seating area is the best solution.

She thinks that people will simply move further up the High Street.

“It’s nice to have seats there for people coming into the town, for them to sit and have a blether,” she said.

“I think the problem will just move to the other end of the High Street. What will the report tell us? It is a trial but it’s not going to give them good evidence.

“I just think it’s the wrong road to go down.”

Councillor Janet Campbell is more optimistic about the move.

Although she is in favour of having seating in a busy city centre hotspot, she is desperate to find a satisfactory resolution.

“There have been anti-social issues and this is a short-term process to see if it will address problems that have frequently been reported to us,” she said.

“I believe seats on a High Street are necessary but we must find a solution by whatever means necessary.

“The problem is that this is such a postage stamp area, if there are problems there those problems are very much in your face.”

Other city figures, however, are against the removal of the benches, not wanting to take away a space for tourists to gather in the city centre.

Inverness Chamber of Commerce chairman Stewart Nicol thinks that the Highland Council should be looking elsewhere for a solution.

“If you take the benches out where do they move to?,” he said.

“It does nothing to tackle the problem. It just moves the problem literally about 200 metres further down the street.

“I think it should be tackled in a different way and we should get the benches back for the benefit of the tourists in our city.”

A spokeswoman for the Highland Council saidadded: “As part of the council’s plans to improve the visitor experience to the city, the four benches have been removed to evaluate the impact on the High Street of attracting visitors to use seating further up the High Street and alongside the new riverside areas.

“New seating is also about to be installed in Bank Street

[Charles Bannerman]

This is merely scratching the surface of the problem and shifting it about to different parts of Inverness. It's all the jakies and junkies that need tackled. How, I'm not entirely sure but soft touch isn't the answer. Yes, I know I'm beginning to sound like Silver Surfer, Cabbie and Reliant Robin who contribute so regularly to what I call the "Care in the Community Column" beside the letters in the Courier, but they are being far too soft on anti social behaviour. On the other hand, the article doesn't make it all that clear whether is jakies and junkies or tourists that are the problem.

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Coos in a Sneckie field

[Charles Bannerman]

13 hours ago, IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER said:

Coos in a Sneckie field

Yes, I ran past that lot whilst doing laps of the UHI campus on Saturday morning!

[IBM]

I bet you were cursing at the ones painted with the Saltires Charles  better than the concrete cows in Milton Keynes!

[Charles Bannerman]

26 minutes ago, IBM said:

I bet you were cursing at the ones painted with the Saltires Charles  better than the concrete cows in Milton Keynes!

I just took the general scene to represent the Scotland squad doing a pre-international training session.

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New or antique ?

[Scotty]

On 9/7/2016 at 4:02 AM, IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER said:

Coos in a Sneckie field

 

a bit like the Chicago "Cows on Parade" or the Toronto "Moose in the City" exhibits from a few years back ....

http://www.chicagotraveler.com/cows_on_parade.htm

http://www1.toronto.ca/wps/portal/contentonly?vgnextoid=1b9833d602943410VgnVCM10000071d60f89RCRD&vgnextchannel=4284ba2ae8b1e310VgnVCM10000071d60f89RCRD

 

[Charles Bannerman]

4 hours ago, IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER said:

New or antique ?

Goodness knows about the wooden holder but the photo dates from somewhere between the 1880s (maybe early 90s - it's embossed on the ironwork) when the Greig St Bridge was built and 1959/60 when the suspension bridge was knocked down.

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But it can look SO beautiful

[Charles Bannerman]

17 minutes ago, IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER said:

But it can look SO beautiful

Absolutely.... apart from one of the several items of scaffolding which have been blighting our cityscape or months, some of them years.

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Even more feckin beautiful mun

[JockWatt]

7 hours ago, IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER said:

Even more feckin beautiful mun

Yes, it does !  I hadn't realised that the 'fortress' was so close to the 'new' bridge !  When is the ground going to be fully enclosed ?

[Scarlet Pimple]

Neither did I Jock!  Good comment and  a  very interesting picture.

[Charles Bannerman]

On ‎04‎/‎10‎/‎2016 at 1:52 AM, JockWatt said:

 I hadn't realised that the 'fortress' was so close to the 'new' bridge !  When is the ground going to be fully enclosed ?

On your first point Jock, when the stadium was in the planning stage, somebody connected with the Harbour tried to make a fuss about ships' captains being blinded by the floodlights and crashing into the "new" (34 year old) bridge. On your second point, I suspect that advertising revenue may be greater if the west side of the ground remains open to the A9.

[JockWatt]

AH, Charles !

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closing down

[Charles Bannerman]

KILLER PRICES! Gone after 50 years.