A new all-weather sports pitch due to be built at Inverness Campus has been hit by delays.
The £1.3m project was approved by Highland Council’s own planners last May.
But it’s all been all quiet at the site since then.
And now it has emerged that the project is paused because building it will cost much more than initially thought.
Offers have been received from contractors to complete the work.
But according to the council, they are “significantly above the available budget”.
A council spokesman said: “Unfortunately, the project is currently paused.
“Work is under way to review the scope of the project and to determine the next steps.”
What happens next?
The project was made possible by a series of grants.
UHI Inverness announced in 2021 that it had been awarded £300,000 towards the new pitch by Sportscotland.
However, its application for funding has now been withdrawn.
Other cash was secured from the council’s developer contributions funding pot and the Town Centre Regeneration Fund.
But if no other sources can stump up some more cash, the project won’t be happening.
Unless it’s scaled back in some way.
If the project is not started by May 2025 it will have to go through the planning process again.
The council said it couldn’t reveal what the offers were for the project because the information is commercially sensitive.
But its use of the word “significantly” also seems… significant.
It suggests that it isn’t on the brink of striking a deal.
Inverness Campus pitch delays are not unique
This project is not alone in this situation.
Neither is the council itself.
Inflation has caused the price of building materials to soar.
And as the cost of living increases, so too does the cost of labour.
These challenges have put question marks over infrastructure projects across the world.
Inverness councillor Ken Gowans has been pushing for better sports facilities on the east side of the city for years.
He remains hopeful that an agreement can still be struck for the pitch to be built.
“It’s still a live project,” councillor Gowans said. “But the tender prices have come back far higher than we were expecting.
“That seems to be typical of projects at the moment. Prices are very volatile and unpredictable.
“What we’re doing now is continuing to seek funding sources for it.
“It’s still something we want to do.”
Highland Council will announce its annual budget later this month.
It is facing an estimated budget gap of around £60m in 2024-25.
With its current level of spending, it is expected to need more than £113m over the next three years to balance the books.
A spokeswoman for Sportscotland said the agency was committed to working with the council and High Life Highland on a region-wide sport and leisure facility strategy.
She added: “The original applicant, UHI Inverness, withdrew its application for funding.
“We have not had any further application for investment for this project.”
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