Community leaders in Kenmore are urging the Protect Loch Tay campaign to back off, amid deepening divisions over the multi-million-pound redevelopment of Taymouth Castle.
Kenmore and District Community Council has accused the protesters of being “undemocratic, misinformed and completely unrepresentative of the wishes of local folk”.
It comes as support for Protect Loch Tay’s online petition, opposing further development of the Taymouth Castle estate by an American real estate company, tops more than 87,000 names.
Protect Loch Tay today insisted there is broad support for the group’s aims.
But the community council says most residents in the 200-strong communities of Kenmore and neighbouring Acharn want the project to go ahead.
They say the area is already reaping the rewards from working with Taymouth Castle developer Discovery Land Company.
And they fear Protect Loch Tay’s campaigning is chasing away visitors and harming existing businesses.
Community Council Chairman Peter Ely said: “We really don’t need anonymous people from all round the world telling us how to manage our wee community.”
Transparency at heart of Taymouth Castle concerns
Discovery Land Company has already started renovating Taymouth Castle.
The landmark had started to fall into serious disrepair after a series of other developers came and went.
It is also working to restore the dilapidated golf course, and has plans for 145 luxury homes, as well as additional facilities.
The development is estimated to bring at least 200 direct jobs to the area.
The company has also bought a series of buildings in Kenmore which it intends to reopen to the public. These include the hotel, village shop and restaurants which are currently closed for renovations.
However, Protect Loch Tay has accused Discovery Land Company of a lack of transparency around its larger plans.
It says the firm is “salami-slicing” by submitting a series of individual planning applications which mask the true scale of the project.
Critics fear the firm is planning a “gated community”, which will squeeze out locals and bring few benefits beyond the estate itself.
But Kenmore and District Community Council says local people are largely in favour of the development.
It says the project has already breathed new life into the community, with workers living in former holiday lets and their children boosting the rolls of local schools.
The watchdog has praised Discovery Land Company for making improvements to the beach area and village square.
The firm has also sponsored Christmas festivities and Highland Games.
And it has criticised Protect Loch Tay for removing people from its Facebook group if they voice support for the development or the community council.
‘Patience is running out’
Kenmore resident Joanne Howie said: “Whenever anyone steps up to defend the development or the community council they either get abuse or booted out the group.
“I was expelled just for saying that I thought the community council had done a great job. I know of many others who have had a similar experience.”
Earlier this week, local hospitality businesses voiced concerns that media attention was making holidaymakers nervous about coming to the area.
Community council member and local business owner Shirley Shearer said: “We know that businesses have customers trying to cancel bookings because they have been told by this group that we have big problems here. Nothing could be further from the truth.”
Fellow community council member Colin Morton said many of the concerns being raised are based on “misinformation, scaremongering and in some cases what seems like malicious conjecture”.
And he is pleading with Protect Loch Tay to back off.
“There will be negatives and positives to come for us and we are largely very optimistic but we need to be left alone to manage this ourselves,” he said.
“We have been patient with this group but that patience is now running out.”
Protect Loch Tay responds to Taymouth Castle allegations
Protect Loch Tay responded to the claims of the community council.
In a statement, the group said: “As there has been no canvassing or polling undertaken, there is no evidence whatsoever to suggest that the ‘majority’ of people in Kenmore support this development.
“This is nothing more than speculation on the part of Kenmore Community Council.
“On the contrary, we have found as much concern about the development as we have support – if not more so. Many of the people who hold these concerns, from Kenmore, Loch Tay, Aberfeldy, and Glen Lyon, are members of our Facebook group.”
The statement reiterated that the group is not against the development and was simply seeking greater scrutiny and protections, adding: “We would never intentionally share inaccuracies and are not aware of any instances in which this has happened.”
And in response to claims that people were being removed from the Facebook group for expressing dissent, it said: “This is a private Facebook group intended for broadly like-minded people to discuss the topic of the Taymouth Castle development and organize accordingly.
“To that end, we have removed a very small handful of people — as of this writing, 23 out of 2,800 members — whose public comments, we believe, have contradicted the aims and intentions of this group.”
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