City chiefs are aiming to unveil the newly-gleaming exterior of the Inverness’s historic Town House as early in the summer tourist season as possible.
The category A-listed building has been shrouded in a specially-designed wrap for almost two years as it undergoes a £4.2million revamp.
A glimpse of the way it will look when completed was revealed last summer when the scaffolding was taken down from the west side of the 1882-built civic centre.
Now local authority officials are preparing for a grand unveiling of the renovated and restored landmark in the next few months.
Inverness city manager David Haas, who is responsible for the project, said the work was on schedule for completion in the summer, and hinted that he was hoping to remove the £20,000 wrap early in the tourist season.
“The project is on time and we’re looking to complete it this summer,” he said.
“At this point we’re working clearly as effectively as possible to bring the building back to its true splendour for as much of the tourist season as we can.
“We want to reveal its new splendour so as many tourists can enjoy it as possible. That’s our aim and we’re working towards that.”
Mr Haas added: “This is a very important project and we’re not going to rush it. We have to make sure it is done right, but clearly we want to the true splendour of the town house as quickly as possible.
“It’s all on schedule and we’re definitely going to be revealing it in the summer, though I couldn’t give you a fixed date.”
Laing Traditional Masonry, contractors for the Highland Council, have been carrying out the external refurbishment works.
Thousands of stones on the town house façade have been replaced – each one individually sized, template made, carved and installed..
The roofs have also been overhauled, lead work has been replaced and the stained glass windows have been refurbished.
However, last year it emerged that workmen in the interior of the Town House had caused thousands of pounds of damage to two chandeliers in the building’s grand hall.
