In a feel good but unintelligent piece, Friday’s (26th February) edition of The Herald celebrated Castle Toward as ‘saved’ for Actual Reality (its current operators as an outdoor education centre) simply because the venue is opening its doors again for residential courses on Monday 1st March.
The actual reality is that it will still be on the open market in the near future.
The article reported but did not consider the impact of Actual Reality Director Christopher Mason’s comment to the paper that Actual Reality are interested in buying ‘all or part’ of the estate.
While noting that the Council is still to go ahead and put the property on the open market, the story was suffused with an optimism which many hope is well placed but are realistic enough to maintain a watching brief.
There are only two secure options for the property and for the South Cowal community.
- One is that the Council accept its responsibilities and retain ownership, maintain and operate the property to it potential within the public sector.
- The second is a community buy out, where it is the community – who will have to live with the eventual outcome, who would decide how to develop the property in the greater interest.
Either of these options would protect the interests of Actual Reality since both the Council and the Community would wish to retain its services as operators of what everyone knows is a unique resource for the benefit of Argyll’s young people.
If Actual Reality succeeds in buying part of the estate, the community have no guarantee that they will approve of the development of the residue that will ensue through the Councils parallel sale.
If Actual Reality can raise the funds to buy the whole property, there is no guarantee that they will not sell part of it to offset their debt – and again the community has no guarantee that they will like the consequence of that residual sell off any better.
The Herald story was sufficiently uninformed on broader community views either to be unaware of or to suppress such concerns.
However, the crowning glory came, appropriately, at the head of the piece where Castle Toward was described as ‘on the shores of Rothesay Bay’.
Does Bute know the extent of its property portfolio?
watching this story unfold from the States is very frustrating, I wish I was closer to help in other ways besides just extending my best wishes to keep things as they are.
where Castle Toward was described as ‘on the shores of Rothesay Bay’.
keeping this line of thinking, it is a mere ferry ride to the shores of USA.
Keep us the good reporting on this story and others for Argyll… i read several times a week.
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Being so close to a general election, I find it all too intresting that all local candidtates from the major parties
have seemed too keen to highlight this as a local issue, and have therefore refused to debate it.
In fact the only polticians who seemed keen to raise this at national level where from renfrewshire. It is my be…lief that the national government should be showing an interest in this subject in particular how it’s being handled at local level. I would ask you to please bear this
in mind as you cast your vote! Do you really want someone who talks a good game but hides when being faced with having to deal with ‘real issues’.
In addtion to this Argyll Online seems to support the SNP candidate as being proactive in this matter, but I beg to differ, afterall it is his party which runs the country if anyone is in was in a position to raise this in the house it was him, I would love to hear what he has actually done, wouldn’t you?
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If you support this cause do not vote SNP on May the 6th 2010, they will not support your views
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