Judge overturns Highland Council's decision to redevelop Inverness street and restrict car access

A senior judge has overturned a decision made by councillors to redevelop an Inverness street and restrict access for cars after a challenge by local shopping centre owners.

Lord Sandison upheld a legal challenge brought to the Court of Session by the trustees of an organisation that owns the Eastgate Shopping Centre.

Lawyers for the Eastgate Unit Trust launched an action at Scotland’s highest civil court over Highland Council’s plans to regenerate Inverness city centre.

The local authority is looking to redesign the city’s Academy Street and decided last year to adopt a proposal which was aimed at “greatly restricting” cars from using the thoroughfare.

The proposal was passed after the council held a consultation exercise in May 2022 to decide how help the local economy.

Lawyers for the trust said the proposal contained in the consultation exercise did not contain details of the scheme later adopted by the council.

It argued that the local authority consequently did not properly hold a lawful consultation.

They also argued that councillors failed to consider the impact that the plan had on local businesses.

The lawyers also told the court that a report presented to councillors “misled” them and that the respondent’s decisions was “pre-determined”.

In a written judgement published by the court on Friday, Lord Sandison upheld the submissions made to him by the centre’s legal team.

He wrote: “It may be seen that, at the very least, the sequence of events which transpired in the course of the consultation exercise failed to assist the respondent not only to choose whether or not to take any action, but to select which course of action it might most advantageously take; it was productive of a legitimate sense of injustice on the part of the petitioners and, it may be, others in a similar position to them.

“While I entirely absolve the respondent and its officers of any subjective intention to run a substantively unfair consultation exercise, recognising that it may only be with the benefit of hindsight that one can see where and how matters went awry, objectively viewed their actions were calculated to, and did, produce a consultation which was unfair to and beyond the point of unlawfulness.

“The respondent’s decisions of August 28 and September 14, 2023 which are complained of were predicated on that unlawful consultation, and fall to be reduced accordingly.”

The council’s proposals aim to reduce traffic in the city centre to make it more attractive for walkers, cyclists and wheelchair users.

It would include stopping through traffic in Academy Street and adding bus lane sections between the junctions of Union Street and Queensgate.

Opponents say it will severely impact businesses and drive more people to out-of-town retail parks.

A meeting of the council’s Inverness city committee on August 28, 2023 approved the plans by 12 votes to ten. It gave permission for officials to finalise the proposed design and consult on a traffic regulation order.

A subsequent move was made to have the decision overturned at the full council on September 14 but the council voted 35 to 33 to approve the committee’s decisions.

In the judgement published on Friday, Lord Sandison wrote of how he was going to quash the council’s decision.

He added: “I shall sustain the petitioners’ first plea-in-law, repel their second plea and those of the respondent, and reduce the decisions of the respondent dated 28 August and 14 September 2023 which are complained of.”

Inverness city leader councillor Ian Brown said: “I am disappointed with Lord Sandison’s judgement in relation to the Judicial Review, that was raised challenging the Council’s intention to redevelop Academy Street.

“Due to the length of Lord Sandison’s judgement the council will require time to consider the decision in detail before we are able to comment further on this matter.

“It is anticipated that an update of the Council’s position in relation to Academy Street will be provided next week following a comprehensive review of the judgement and the options available to the council.”

A spokesperson for Eastgate Centre said: “Representing the owners of the Eastgate Centre, we’re delighted by the judgement of Lord Sandison in this matter issued earlier today.

“It’s been said that “Liberty’s in every blow” and all along we’ve made a stand for the commercial and retail businesses of Inverness city centre. Today, we believe common sense has prevailed.

“We’re passionate about the prosperity of the city centre and fully support upgrading streetscape proposals to Academy Street.

“We support the concept of reduction in traffic along Academy Street, speed restrictions, making it safer for pedestrians, those with mobility issues, parents with young children and cyclists.

“However, the answer is certainly not the closure of Academy Street to through traffic as that will undoubtedly have a significantly negative economic impact.

“For the vitality of local businesses, consumers must be able to use Academy Street during business trading hours without restriction. Although our door has always remained open for discussion, unfortunately, due to a variety of reasons there’s been a lack of engagement, a lack of consultation and a reluctance to engage and work together to consider alternatives or compromise.

“Along with our solicitor’s Burness Paull, I’d especially like thank those at Inverness BID for their assistance & support over the past year, along with a number of key local political figures. This matter has been extremely time consuming, costly and at times, damn-right frustrating.”