Anne welcomed CCC members to the meeting and introduced Lynne Sproull as the new Councillor.

Douglas Cooper , Rachel Robertson

Ronald asked for Item 5.4 to be amended to "…. to represent the CCC on the Stakeholders Panel."

Proposed: Jane Clunas

• The pavement at the bus stop by Victoria Hall has now been repaired.
• There will not be an issue accommodating pupils from P7 on the school bus.
• A big rubbish bin will be sited at the play area.
• The replacement play equipment should be available this week.
• Further clarification was required to identify the dangerous area at Townlands Park – Anne will look into this.
• Planning permission will be required for the multi-court and David has requested that the plans be submitted to Di Agnew so that she can liaise with the various departments as appropriate.

The rungs up to the play equipment are too far apart for younger children so they have to be lifted onto it. Paige asked if it would be possible for steps to be provided. Also a request was made for swings to be installed for younger children.

Paige advised that the school bus has broken down on a number of occasions recently but George stated that it has in fact broken down 4 times in 2.5 years.

Paige advised that there will not be a Bouncy Castle at the Regatta as the cost of hire plus the cost of insurance was not viable.

PC Williams reported that there had been 45 reported incidents during the month which included:-

- an act of vandalism at the East Church but the offenders had been caught

- a number of incidents in Fortrose involving youths aged 14-16 including fights/damage to cars/fires on the beach. 2 individuals from Cromarty had been arrested.

Wilf advised that Green Gym had visited on 21 June to continue the work on Braehead but only 2 volunteers turned up. They continued to prune shrubs but it is going to be an ongoing battle to keep the area looking tidy. Cromarty is not in the programme for July but Wilf will book a slot for August.

Sam Lowe from Tech services has looked at the current site and will investigate the possibility of moving the bins to near the Coastguard Station but a concrete base should be provided.

Ronald advised the boats had now been tidied and the site looked better.

All the details for the new finger points have been sent o Dorothy Maxwell but Wilf has not heard from her since. Douglas said that new finger points have been installed at the bottom of the Denny (Christmas tree site) but there is not one for the Gaelic Chapel. No one knew about this, Wilf to investigate.

Jane advised the finger points outside Forsyth House for the toilets have been turned the wrong way round. Ronald will attend to this.

A request has been made by Margaret Miller for finger points on the American Road to the cottages to enable delivery drivers to find the cottages. It was agreed that as this is a private road, it is up to the owners to deal with this.

The cheque has been paid from the Common Good Fund as requested.

The Pre Ward Forum has taken place and it was agreed that Community Councils should send 2 representatives to each Forum. The next Forum is 30 August and the main topic for discussion will be Public Transport and Transport Issues. Anne will attend with Douglas McPhee.

Di has investigated this matter. Mrs Faulds needs to formally write to John Ritchie (Area Education & Sports Manager) to request that her child be collected from home. Anne will advise Mrs Faulds accordingly.

Vivienne advised that she has arranged for a signed copy of the Annual Accounts to be sent to Bob Cameron.

Wilf expressed concerns about the amount of the grant but David explained that there is now an additional fund held by the Ward Manager and that Community Councils can bid for this.

Anne read an email from Ken Oates from Public Health. He stated that he had investigated this with Scottish Water and had been advised that the levels of ammonia and chlorine had not exceeded the standard levels expected of the water industry, but can vary at times of heavy rain. Therefore, there is no apparent reason for an increase in skin complaints.

It was agreed that Anne should copy this email to The Medical Centre and suggest that any individuals affected could contact Ken directly.

Anne read an email from Zoulla Spirou expressing concerns about the possibility of nuclear decommissioning work taking place at Nigg as this was covered in the Ross-shire Journal last week and a number of letters from locals were also published.

The current situation is that the site has not yet been sold and negotiations do not seem to be progressing. If and when this happens, the new owners would need to go though the planning process and it is likely that any plans for this sort of activity would be strongly opposed. The Councillors agreed that the only possible action at this time is to monitor the situation.

Three applications have been received this month

• Cromarty Primary School

£400 for the purchase of new goal posts - Approved

• Cromarty Primary School

£450 towards the cost of Outward Bound Course in May 2008 – Approved

• Organisers of Cromarty Food Festival

£450 towards expenses of visiting reporter. - Approved

All Councillors had read the document issued by West Coast Energy and discussed the implications for Cromarty. The plan currently is to build 5 turbines but, if successful, this may in time be expanded to 25 which would obviously have a greater visual impact on the landscape. These turbines will be 125’ high – bigger than those in Evanton and there would probably also be a line of pylons. Anne advised that about 60 people attended the local meeting in Nigg, and most seemed to object to the plans. West Coast Energy will be holding a number of roadshows in October when more information will be available. Lynne will take on any planning issues on behalf of the Council if required.

Secretarial expenses: £40.00

Accounts payable balance: nil

Accounts receivable balance: £75.00

Lynne advised that planning application has been received for work to the gardens at Hugh Miller House. No issues raised.

David had nothing further to report.

Anne will reply and provide him with details of the cemetery manager and the undertaker.

Allan Jenkins requested updated contact details for the Council which Anne has provided.

Douglas expressed concern about the condition of the front of the Courthouse. David said this was under investigation as there had been some water penetration.

Alex Davidson asked for an update on the lights. Ronald explained the issues with the power supply and the size of the lampposts and said that alternative lights were being considered and that they should be in place this winter.

Jane advised that the posters had just gone up for the competition. There will be 3 different categories – Best Garden/Best Sweet Pea display and Best Container. Entry forms are available in the post office and The Emporium.

The lane opposite the Hugh Miller Institute is overgrown with weeds. David will ask Tech services to deal.

The ferry should have returned today but was prevented by bad weather. Ronald said it should be back by the end of the week but will be beached for a couple of days for minor works. It should be operational by end of next week.

The First Responders have received a training update. An ambulance van is to be provided but this will cost £1500/year for 5 years, then it will belong to the community. Ronald is trying to obtain funding for this.

Three new recruits have joined the local fire brigade and are undergoing training this week.

This is very overgrown and requires urgent attention. Permission is required from the owner Major Charles Phipps to deal with it. Unfortunately, no one has contact details for Major Phipps. Vivienne suggested posting a notice on Cromarty Live.