Taymouth Castle Estate Update (Oct 2022)
The Community Council continues to have regular liaison meetings with Taymouth Castle Estate developers. Discussions has been positive, open and fruitful. The following is a summary of our our discussions and progress made.
Surrounding area Community Councils are also being consulted and informed on developments.
Beach area
- The beach area has been cleaned up, bare tree roots covered, and wall reinforced
- Two prominent life belts have been installed
- The commemorative benches already in place will remain
- New roadside bollards, buckets, tables and benches, in keeping with those already there, will be installed soon
- The outflow pipes that run into the loch will be removed
Public access
- There have been some temporary changes to the core paths within the castle estate on safety grounds.
- New path markers have been installed in the castle estate to make the path network clearer Public access to the beach will remain unrestricted
- The intention is to reopen Chinese and Newhall bridges and these will continue to form part of the public core path network
- The Gallops walk has been cleared of fallen trees and debris and we hope the north terrace walk will have similar improvements
Toilets
- We are continuing to talk with the developers about getting new toilet facilities in the village and are optimistic that something will result
Village Square
- Many new flower baskets have been installed and tended
- Street furniture is being reviewed with a view to replacements more in keeping with the character of the village
- A new Community Council noticeboard will replace the damaged ones at the reading rooms
- Street lighting and Christmas lights are under review
- The square surface and footpaths will also be reviewed
- The opportunity to provide new benches in the square area is being pursued with land owners
Reading rooms
- We are grateful to McKenzie Strickland Architects which has undertaken a structural survey of the rooms pro bono to identify any building work that may be required
- The estate developers have installed broadband free of charge and assisted with clearance of unwanted items
- The Community Council is pursuing a transfer of the ownership of the rooms from Perth and Kinross Council to the community, and once the situation is clearer will carry out a local consultation
- The stugged tree stem supporting columns in the veranda will soon be in need of replacement. This will be difficult but the castle developers have offered to help with this if possible
Kenmore Primary School
- The school had a generous donation from the estate towards their Wee Robbie Event - a run & cycle event through the grounds.
Salmon Opening Season Ceremony
- Although the hotel is temporarily closed the ceremony will continue, hosted by the Taymouth Castle Estate.
- New safer handrail is being installed on the jetty in preparation for this
Telephone box
- Options for the renovation of the box in the square are being considered and the castle developers have offered to pay for the work
Castle Development
- Building work is being carried out in line with the planning permission previously granted but with variations to meet current standards and changing requirements. Changes require planning consent and applications can be seen and commented on in the PKC website.
Castle Walls
- The listed walls around the Castle estate on the A827 require extensive maintenance. DLC is working with Perth and Kinross Council to find a safe way to do this and return the walls to their original state.
Kenmore Hotel
- The hotel is being used for staff accommodation and in the longer term will be fully refurbished and reopened to a very high standard
Staff Accommodation
- The estate will require hundreds of employees once it is in operation. Finding accommodation for them will be a major challenge.
- The estate has already purchased holiday-let houses for residential use by staff and further purchases and house building are anticipated
Taymouth Trading Building
- Current options for this building include a new bakery and cafe but this may change
Paper Boat and boating jetties
- The estate has bought the Paper Boat building and boating jetties and yard but has not decided on their future
Fishing permits
- No fishing is currently permitted.