A former tourist information centre which has lain empty in its prominent town centre location for nearly five years is to go on the market.
Lord Thurso, the new chairman of VisitScotland, revealed the news in a memo to a concerned local businessman.
Donald Donaldson had approached him raising the issue of the old church building on Argyll Square, which housed the Visitor Information Centre (Vic).
The building was closed in 2011 after plaster started falling from the ceiling and VisitScotland moved to a new location on the North Pier.
Lord Thurso, former Liberal Democrat MP for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, wrote: “A number of approaches were made in the years following our exit from the property and we had hoped that some of these parties might have access to grant funding not open to VisitScotland which would allow for a more extensive refurbishment of the church.
“Unfortunately, none of these approaches came to fruition. During this time, the property was also placed on the Scottish Government’s property site, e-PIMS, so that other public bodies were made aware that this property was available for sale. Unfortunately no interest was generated through this route either.”
He continued: “Now that this process has been concluded, the VisitScotland Board has given its approval for the property to be sold on the open market. We are currently awaiting the final governance processes to be completed before instructing an agent to put the property onto the open market which I hope will be in the not too distant future.”
