Avoch fun day and regatta help keep local loos open in Black Isle village
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MONEY raised at a Black Isle fun day will help ensure visitors and locals alike don’t need to fear being caught short while passing through.
As previously reported, Avoch and Killen Community Council took over management responsibilities for the public toilets in Avoch when the Harbour Trust there said it could no longer afford to stump up for repairs to frequent blockages.
Avoch Amenities Association organised a fun day to run alongside the community rowing club’s regatta recently as a way of raising funds.
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Village rallies to toilets after Trust pulls the plug
Fundraising on the day included a playable ‘whack a rat’ stall which raised more than £110.
Community councillor Kathy Taylor said: “Currently, the budget we get from Highland Council does not cover our costs so we need to raise that bit extra by ourselves. The money raised will go directly to trying to keep the toilets open.”
Signs have urged caravan and motorhome users to not dispose of their waste down the toilets, pointing to the nearby caravan site at Fortrose Bay which has black waste disposal facilities.
Ms Taylor said: “The main problem is that they are not fit for purpose – they were built many, many years ago. The pipes keep getting blocked because the plumbing work is not up to modern day standards. I know people have blamed campervan disposal but we certainly haven’t seen any evidence of that being the case – it’s just the amount they get used, the pipes simply just can’t cope with the volume.”
She added: “We’ve had donations from local businesses and just local people on our crowdfunding account and I think that is sitting around £1000 just now.
“So what that means is we have enough money to keep them open for the rest of the summer at least.
“It will also give us a bit of breathing space to see if we can take that next step and get some funding applications out there in hope of finding a permanent solution.”
Speaking of the success of the fun day, she added: “Hopefully this fundraising event can become a yearly occasion because it was a great day for the community and it was amazing to see different local people pulling together to help each other.”
