A new development at Oban’s North Pier will welcome visitors from yachts and cruise ships directly into the town centre.
The design for the facility and associated maritime visitor centre was agreed by Argyll and Bute Council yesterday, after years of deliberations and discussions.
A previous plan by a community group to put a pontoon development in the bay failed to attract council funding as it was seemed not to be financially viable.
The regeneration of the North Pier is part of the council’s ambitious plans to invest £6.9milion on improvements to the town centre as part of its Chord (Campbeltown Helensburgh Oban Rothesay and Dunoon) project.
At the Oban Lorn and the Isles area committee meeting, Kirsteen Macdonald, Chord project manager, said: “This project has been ongoing in various forms for quite a few years.
“Following several meetings it was decided the best place for it was on the north face of the North Pier.”
Roddy McCuish, Lead Councillor for Oban Lorn and the Isles, said: “It’s great to see this at the stage it is. It has been a running sore for quite a long while in Oban. Everyone knew we needed this, but it has taken a while to make it happen.”
Councillor Ellen Morton, Policy Lead for Roads, Infrastructure, Amenity Services and Special Projects, said: “Oban is one of our priorities. We have lots of plans, sometimes too many plans for the number of officers we have. Our officers work very hard to get policy delivered.
“I think this really is a good news story for Oban. The Campbeltown berthing facility is fantastic, it is transforming the centre of Campbeltown and transforming the number of people coming into the town.
“I think there is a lot more good news to come, this will be great once it is delivered.”
The facilities will be used by cruise passengers, kayakers, yachters, maritime day trippers, tour operators, leisure ship tenders and sea-life enthusiasts. They will include commercial space, toilets and showers.
The pontoon berths will be protected by a breakwater.
It is expected that the pontoons will be in the water and the visitor centre up and running by next summer.
