College on the road to becoming a reality

Published on 07/05/2008 22:02

ONE of the most important developments in the Highlands, costing over £100 million and creating more than 400 jobs, has taken a major step forward.

A master plan is about to be drawn up for a new Inverness College campus, including research facilities for a future Highlands and Islands university, with hopes that an outline planning application can be lodged by early next year.

Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) is leading the project in partnership with Inverness College, the UHI Millennium Institute (UHI) and the Highland Council to develop a 200-acre site just off the A9.

This will include a new business school, research and innovation facilities, student accommodation and a regional sports centre of excellence all set within parkland.

The project is dependent on the completion of the proposed Inverness Trunk Link road. Two sections of the route have been constructed but need to be joined up to allow traffic to circumnavigate the city and provide access to the new campus.

James Gibbs, HIE's area manager for the Inner Moray Firth said: "This is a proposal of huge significance for the Highlands, making a major contribution to the north of Scotland's knowledge economy. We want to provide a facility that is magnetic to students, academia and knowledge-based inward investors.