Community Centre At Pulteneytown Gets Go Ahead From Caithness Planning Committee

3rd July 2006

The Community centre which was described as partly a regeneration centre was given the go ahead after site inspection today in Wick. 8 councillors attended and there were no dissenting voices. Councillor MacNab who is also the manager of the Pulteneytown People's Project and the applicant for the new centre did not take part in the proceedings as she had an interest in the result. Councillor Mowat was not available for the meeting.

Despite being set up a hearing following objections none of the objectors appeared to make their case against the new centre.

If funding applications now in the pipeline are successful Wick will have a new centre costing in excess of �2million to continue local people's drive to turn round the area that is listed along with another area of Wick in the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation. Chairman of the PPP David Dunnet hoped that the centre would be open within two years.

The centre will provide On the ground floor the building will provide a sports and function hall with adjacent store, a plant room, a youth project room, two classrooms, a cafeteria with internet access, a kitchen, a soft play area and a nursery cr�che with adjacent rooms. On the upper floor there will be an office for the Pultneytown Peoples Project with adjacent committee room, office and reception room, a meeting/function room, 6 social economy office units, a kitchen, a recording studio and 3 IT suites.

Education and training are a large part of what the new centre will be about to try to take Pulteneytown people out of the category of one of the highest unemployment black spots in the north.

[Photo: Former PPP Office]