Seven major Inverness developments to keep an eye on in 2024

2024 is shaping up to be a busy year for development in Inverness.

With question marks hanging over several sites, we can expect plenty of debate about what’s best for the city in the next 12 months.

Here’s a look at some of the key things to keep an eye on in the Highland capital this year.

Academy Street

The furore around the future of Inverness’s main thoroughfare is now entering its third calendar year.

Plans to greatly reduce traffic on the busy city centre road have been bubbling away since October 2022.

Highland Council’s own timeline for Academy Street has summer 2024 listed as the start date for construction.

This means that, if all goes to plan, it should be done and dusted by then.

Wider pavements and fewer cars is the ultimate goal. Image: Highland Council

But that is by no means guaranteed.

It can’t happen without external funding and given the Scottish Government has just pledged a ton of money towards the A9 dualling project, is there a cost-cutting rethink of some other objectives to come?

2023 was a spicy year for the Academy Street project.

Public consultations have indicated that the plans seem to have majority support. And councillors have now twice narrowly voted in favour of progressing things.

But the voices of dissent have been getting louder.

Public consultations about Academy Street have produced some pretty polarising views. Image: Sandy McCook/DC Thomson

Businesses have raised a legal challenge against the council’s plans.

If that proves successful, it would likely put the kibosh on the whole thing.

But even if it’s not, it could cause delays that interfere with what seems to be a pretty delicate timeline.

The upcoming economic impact assessment scheduled for early 2024 should also make interesting reading.

Whatever happens, it’s an issue likely to dominate discourse in Inverness once again.

Inverness Castle

Unlike Academy Street, this one is far from a thorny issue.

The huge revamp of Inverness Castle is one key project for the city that seems to have everyone’s backing.

There has been no bickering about whether it’ll be a good thing here.

It’s mostly just been excitement at something that should have happened a long time ago.

An impression of the planned accessible roof terrace at Inverness Castle. Image: High Life Highland

We’re jumping a gun a little bit – the finished Inverness Castle won’t be open to the public until 2025 – but there’s going to be a lot of visible change happening in 2024.

Construction work is due to be finished next November or December.

A six-month interior refit will follow, leaving it all on schedule to open to the public in around 18 months time.

With scaffolding coming down, Invernessians will now be able to really see things taking shape.

Raigmore bus gate

The council and NHS Highland have been itching to put a checkmark next to this one for a while.

At the site, it has looked pretty much ready to go for a while.

But instead of opening last August like previously planned, it’s now being pencilled in for “early 2024”.

A map of the Raigmore bus gate route. Image: DC Thomson/Christopher Donnan

The council said “supply chain issues” were behind the delay.

Basically, the only thing missing is a barrier needed at the estate end to stop traffic from crossing the Raigmore Hospital site when a helicopter is landing nearby.

A huge backlog of work has put the company responsible for installing that way behind schedule.

But it is imminent.

Once it’s complete, it’ll prevent buses from being caught up in the usual rush-hour congestion at the hospital’s entrance.

That should deliver a timely boost to the city’s public transport network.

Playback Bar

We’ve become far more accustomed to news about places closing down in the city centre than new ones opening up in recent years.

Although our recent analysis on the state of the heart of Inverness produced better results than most would expect.

Taran Campbell, who is opening Playback Bar on Academy Street, Inverness. Image: Sandy McCook/DC Thomson

Excitement is building at the prospect of a new venue offering something the city hasn’t seen before.

Taran Campbell and David Montgomery’s Playback Bar will offer a range of activities including axe-throwing, beer pong and giant foosball.

In early December, Taran told the Press and Journal it should be open within eight to 10 weeks.

Bught Park and Northern Meeting Park

Another one where we are slightly jumping the gun.

The completion date to revamp these two iconic Inverness sites isn’t until March 2025 but you’ll notice a lot of change in the next 12 months.

At the Bught, the main stand is being redeveloped and a new sports pavilion will be built.

A visual of how Bught Park could look after the redevelopment. Image: Camanachd Association

Alongside this, there will be a new interactive shinty experience paying tribute to the sport’s heritage.

And once it’s all said and done, it will be easier for the venue to host large-scale outdoor events.

Demolition of its outdated changing rooms has started and once complete, construction of the new pavilion will begin.

At the Northern Meeting Park, the plan is to return the existing grandstand and pavilion to its former glory.

The exterior of the building will be restored to its original design.

An artist’s impression of the plans for the Northern Meeting Park in Inverness. Image: Highland Council

Ultimately, the council is hoping to make the park – a prime green space close to the city centre – more accessible to the public.

These two projects are all part of a £20m Levelling Up Funding bid.

The third project that’s part of the bid is the Castle Street Energy Centre.

It will provide heat and energy to Inverness Castle and the Inverness Town House.

All three projects are scheduled to be finished in March 2025.

Riverside Way

Improvements along the River Ness have been a long time coming.

A redesign of the area to make it more attractive for pedestrian and cyclists is due to be completed in June 2024.

It is hoped the changes will make the area more attractive for pedestrians and cyclists.

Once it’s finished, there will be wider pavements, a new parking layout along Bught Road and a segregated contraflow cycle lane.

Street lighting throughout the project will be also be upgraded.

In short, it’s a needed spruce up of one of the city’s most popular spots for tourists.

The Ironworks

Nearly a year on from the final gig at the Ironworks, there has been surprisingly little work done at the site.

A planning application from Bricks Capital to replace the music venue with a 155-bed hotel was approved in August 2022.

But demolition work has yet to take place and with the developer needing to begin work within three years of gaining planning permission, time is marching on.