Under threat Tain Royal Academy Community Complex (TRACC) set for £1.2m lifeline
A PROPOSED £1.2m council investment could save a closure-threatened Easter Ross leisure facility for the next five years, the Ross-shire Journal can reveal.
And if the recommendation over the Tain Royal Academy Community Complex (TRACC) is agreed, it will buy time for the community to put together a funding package for a replacement facility.
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The breakthrough follows a determined community campaign and the work of a steering group set up to explore options to protect a much-loved facility that houses the area’s only swimming pool.
Tain and Easter Ross councillors Laura Dundas and Maureen Ross, who have championed the facility and both sit on the steering group, warmly welcomed the development. Cllr Ross said: “This gives us breathing space and a springboard for serious fundraising. As a local primary school wall reminds us: ‘Dream it, Believe it, Achieve it’.”
A Highland Investment Plan update report going to a full meeting of Highland Council later this month seeks agreement for capital funding of £1.2m to enable TRACC to be retained as a separate, standalone building for a period of up to five years once the new Tain Campus building is operational.
The new campus, for young people aged three to 18, is due to open in February of next year. TRACC is reaching the end of its natural lifespan and will need replaced. But the prospect of a potentially lengthy hiatus without a swimming pool was rejected by the local community.
The report states: “There is a clear consensus that the community wants significant investment, either through a new build or full refurbishment. Closure and minimal refurbishment are overwhelmingly rejected, and the majority see TRACC’s current state as unsustainable and demand a long-term solution.”
There was significant public support for work that will see TRACC retained as a separate standalone building while longer term options are pursued.
TRACC’s future has been in jeopardy for over a year, with Highland Council initially presenting five options — all involving either long-term closure or complete shutdown without replacement.
The community responded swiftly and passionately, with over 750 residents participating in a survey that was ultimately not accepted.
In response, Tain Community Council hosted a public meeting, attended by local councillors Laura Dundas, Maureen Ross, former Cllr Derek Louden and Malcolm MacLeod, assistant chief executive of place at Highland Council.
A sixth option was developed to reflect community feedback Mr MacLeod pledging to take these views back to council.
The Highland Investment Plan aims to deliver sustainable services and infrastructure across the region through a potential £2.1 billion in capital investment over the next two decades, funded through a two per cent ring-fenced council tax increase and strategic borrowing.
Asked to comment on the latest development, Cllr Ross said: “I’m confident that the many groups and businesses in the TRACC area will come together to make this vision a reality. We must prove to potential funders such as Sport Scotland, Robertson Trust, and others that we are serious — TRACC is vital to the wellbeing of our area.”
Cllr Dundas said: “I’ve been working closely with the Capital Planning and Estate Strategy team on the design and layout of the proposed new facility, which will join onto the new 3–18 Campus. Although we’re still in the early stages, progress is promising. Now that we have a clearer way forward, the TRACC Campaign Steering Group can forge ahead with approaching funders. This is a special day—one worth celebrating for sure.”
The full meeting of Highland Council takes place on October 30.