Ardross Community Council Minutes of Management Meeting

14th December 2020

Held via Zoom

Peter Allen (Chair), John Edmondson (Secretary), Alison Gordon (Treasurer), Bill Robins (Vice- Chair), Willie Beattie, Ruaridh Waugh and Bruce Marshall.

Cllr Maxine Smith.

Kelly Falkiner, Sandra Cunliffe, Jane Smith, Ian Duncan, Gunta Freidenelde, James McTaggart, Calvert and Margaret Stinton.

Meeting opened at 8.00pm

09:49 1. Their were apologies from George MacKay. Cllr Mike Finlayson. And Richard Smith.

2. The minutes of the November Management Meeting and the October Public Meeting on the 19th October were proposed by Bruce Marshall and seconded by Peter Allen.

3. The Secretary had distributed the notes from the meeting, previously and we had heard nothing back from them regarding the index linking of the fund.

The Chair informed the Community Council that he had had a telephone conversation with the Chair of the Edderton Community Council Michael Brown regarding the Community Benefit for the Strathrory . Michael explained to Peter that Edderton CC would not be attending any roundtable meetings held by EnergieKontor and that he thought the Ardross CC should be doing the same. Michael thought that it was better to hold one to one meetings. Edderton CC thought that the preferred transport route would be via Edderton and so all the turbines would be coming through their CC area. Michael thought that Ardross and Edderton CC’s should be the main beneficiaries of the Community Benefit and that this was unlikely to be agreed at at a roundtable meeting with the “pack of wolves” made up of all the other CC’s invited to the roundtable meeting. The Chair wanted to have a discussion as to how the Ardross CC wanted to approach the matter. Should we attend these meetings or hold back?

13:40 Ruaridh Waugh had made enquiries from his contacts in Ardgay about the other wind farms they were dealing with as far as community benefit was concerned; they were currently dealing with 5 new fund negotiations and had previous dealings with EnergieKontor for the Lairg II wind farm. The feeling was that the use of boundaries to determine the CC’s that would benefit was not a good approach and very strange, the inclusion of Strathpeffer CC seemed ridiculous. The usual approach was to ask the host community who should be included in discussions for community benefit. Peter Allen asked why Ardgay CC had not included Ardross CC as a beneficiary of these Page !1 of 6! other wind farms since we shared a common boundary, but this had not been thought about by Ardgay as the boundary issue was a new way of determining the community benefit in their mind.

In addition the Chair explained that Michael Brown had said that the payout of £5,000/ MW was a benchmark that dated from years ago and that a payout of £7,000/MW was more in line with the rate that should be paid. It should be most definitely index linked too. It was also stated that the Beinn Tharsuinn wind farm was due to be 17:25 repowered/regrown in 2024.

The Secretary wanted to add into the discussions the two letters that we had received from Kilmuir and Easter Logie CC and Ardgay CC regarding the community benefit. Kilmuir and Easter Logie CC had produced a formula based on populations that left Ardross CC with some 15% of the fund. This had been flatly refused by Ardgay CC as a way of determining the the share of the funds and had stated that the share of the host community, Ardross, should be decided upon before proceeding with the share for other CC’s. Ardgay’s approach was agreed as the correct approach. 18:54 Discussions then ensued about what then was the best approach to achieving getting the best share for Ardross. Various options were discussed including just writing a letter and not taking part in any meetings, which is what Edderton CC had done. The Secretary had looked at setting out the criteria and translating this using mapping to establish some kind of meaningful formula; cross-referencing properties those that were effected by the wind farm and within a certain radius. This was not an easy task and would take too long with freely available mapping. There was a suggestion by Ian Duncan to hire somebody to do the mapping exercise for us. It was decided that this 22:21 could be further discussed after having had a meeting with Michael Brown and/or the Edderton CC which was something that was agreed upon.

The question of whether it was better to just write a letter to Energiekontor or to attend the roundtable meetings with a clear plan for the apportionment of the community benefit funds was not to be decided until after the meeting with Edderton CC. But the feeling was it was better to attend and set out the Ardross CC’s position and not deviate from this.

23:41 Sandra Cunliffe found the whole process that Energiekontor had embarked upon extremely divisive: pitching Community Councils against each other. They were also trying to get as many Members as possible on board by involving as many community councils as possible. James McTaggart thought there might be a risk of reducing the effect of the Strathrory wind farm to only those that could see it out of their “kitchen window”, whereas its also effected various recreational facilities in Ardross for instance. There was also a precedent that could be set for other wind farms that were inevitably coming down the track and then the implications could be quite far reaching and it might not turn out the way we wanted it to. The Chair agreed to contact Michael Brown with a view to having a meeting to discuss the community benefit, and it was also agreed that the Secretary ask that the meeting with Energiekontor be delayed until the 28th January 2021.

28:46 4. John Edmondson declared an interest in that he is a director of Ardross Online for the next item, but he had no financial interest in the matter, and would be taking part in the meeting.

The Community Council had received a letter from Ian Duncan on behalf of Kildermorie Estates for a contribution towards broadband provision on the Estate. The

Page !2 of 6! 28:46 correspondence had been received after the Agenda had been published and the Chair ruled that decisions for such applications to the Community Council for such amounts should be decided only when the item was specifically on the Agenda, and that no decision would be made tonight. Ian Duncan went onto explain that there was little he could add to the letter he had sent to the Chair, Secretary and other members of the Community Council. He thought it was a fair proposition. Ian was quite happy to answer any questions or leave the meeting to allow discussion should the Community Council wish.

John Edmondson thought that there were quite a few issues surrounding this 32:08 application and that we should ask Ian in writing to answer any questions to allow us to put the matter up for discussion in January 2021. Some of the issues were to do with a comparison of the Ardross Network and the provision by Highland Wireless to Kildermorie. The Ardross CC might want to consider several issues: the longevity of the installation, on grid vs off grid solutions, the fact that the Ardross Network could support 190+ connections. Hard installs of which Kildermorie was one were always to be sorted out on a case by case basis. So John Edmondson suggested that the CC draw up any relevant questions after discussions. Ian explained that he was happy with this and quite happy to answer any individuals questions as well.

33:58 Ian wanted to point out all the argument about “hardwiring” seemed to fall apart when Ardross Online [AO] offered a new connection via the Novar 1 wind farm. He explained that he had already committed to Highland Wireless, when the Novar 1 proposal was put forward, and that Ardross Online were aware of this. In any case the Highland Wireless solution was cheaper than the Novar 1 proposal. John Edmondson explained that all the proposals were for a wireless connection, but the Novar 1 proposal was an on grid solution; the broadband signal would have been sent wirelessly but the equipment would have been powered by a 240V supply, a 3-pin socket. Although it had battery backup for a power cut it did not rely on a power bank, it did not rely on small wind turbines and was not off grid. The Chair concluded that we wrote to Ian with any questions we might have.

36:54 The Chair had had a thank-you from Jane Smith and Kerry Dolan for the money towards the Christmas Treat, the Chair in turn thanked them both for all the hard work in getting this done.

37:46 The Chair had had a letter dated the 10th December 2020 from Richard Smith the Chair of the Ardross Community Woodland [ACW] which he read out. It gave an update on progress and asking for financial support from the Ardross CC. The Chair stated that although we could discuss the letter no decision was to be made tonight as it was only received on the 11th of December. Jane Smith on being asked by the Chair whether Richard Smith was around confirmed that he wasn’t. The Chair said that the Ardross CC would need to know what the level of financial support the ACW were looking for. Ian Duncan declared that he was a member of the ACW, but not on the Board. Bruce Marshall although a Director had not been at the meeting mentioned in the letter and did not know what had been discussed. John Edmondson thought there were come other issues/questions that the Ardross CC might want to consider. We hadn't seen a complete map of the area proposed to be purchased, he had heard that the original top section had been sold. He was also interested in the company structure. For instance were there safeguards in the Articles Of Association to prevent the assets of ACW being disposed of between the directors or shareholders. Although Bruce Marshall stated that there were no shareholders, John Edmondson explained that no-one on the Community Council had seen the Articles of Association. Ian Duncan thought that we were discussing the application, but the Chair ruled that we were only looking at possible questions to ask ACW to understand the request. Page !3 of 6! 41:58 Ian Duncan then broadened the discussion as a relative outsider that sometimes the Ardross CC looked at trying to find ways not to spend the money. He accepted that applications did require to submit details and make their case. He thought that the CC had the balance the wrong way, having read the minutes of the meetings for the last 25 years. The Secretary explained that the Ardross CC were not the final stop in the process and we were accountable to the Wind Farm Companies who set certain rules as to how the funds were spent and we have to be diligent in this process. It’s not that we were trying to be difficult and in any case a rigorous process made for good practice. Jane Smith apologised that Richard Smith could not be present, and she understood that there would be legitimate questions and asked that someone from the Ardross CC wrote with any questions to ACW. Bruce Marshall cast some light on the ACW company structure, but agreed that a more firm proposal was required, and what exactly was proposed to be bought. 48:26 Sandra Cunliffe wanted to follow up the comments regarding the Ardross CC distribution of funds. Her first introduction at a CC meeting was in connection with the broadband contract. She said that she had been impressed with the diligence in the way the Ardross CC had exerted their responsibility with the funds and to the community. James McTaggart echoed Sandra’s comments. There had been a lot of questions from the Community Councillors about the broadband project, but it had made it a lot better project in the end. James did think that it would be a good idea to set out the different funds and the conditions attached to them. Kelly Falkiner added that as she mixed with the younger generation at the school in particular the general feeling was the Ardross CC was hard to get to part with the community’s money. However having attended the meetings she had seen applications to the Ardross CC be successful, but there were applications to the CC which weren't successful and with good reason. But the failed applications lead to gossiping at the “school gate” and damaged the reputation of the Ardross CC. Attending the meetings and hearing and seeing how the Ardross CC dealt with applications however told a different story. An example had been at last months meeting where someone had suggested giving money to each household, the idea was rejected; but it prompted a conversation as to what we could do with the money that benefited everyone.

Ian Duncan pointed out that if the money wasn't used wisely and in the interest of the Community and spent then there was a risk that it might go to a higher authority, he 54:43 wasn't necessarily advocating that he was in favour of this. Kelly Falkiner pointed out though that there weren't hundreds of applications involved. Ian Duncan still had the perception that the Ardross CC, having read the past minutes, although guardians sat on the money Sandra Cunliffe pointed out that she had been to a lot more meetings recently than Ian and that she did not have this impression and viewed things in a similar way to Kelly. Ian Duncan accepted this might be the case. Ruaridh Waugh said that he thought that it could be more straightforward to apply and people might be daunted by the prospect and perhaps a bit more publicity was needed. A conversation for another day maybe.

It was perhaps not clear as to what the Community Benefit could be spent on and what it couldn’t be spent on. But there were 5 wind farms all with slightly different conditions and the Chair said that there was not time tonight to discuss this. The Chair stated that the best way to approach the Community Council was by attending one of their meetings, where they were happy to discuss any projects and offer advice on how to submit a successful application. Although the funds all had slightly different criteria none of them could benefit an individual. Ian Duncan wondered how the condition that the Community Benefits could not be used for religious purposes reconciled with the Ardross Church and them seeking funding as a community

Page !4 of 6! building. The Secretary though that a lot hinged on the wording of the new Deeds for 1:03:05 the Church which had been amended, but the Ardross CC had not seen.

The Secretary had received an email from the Post Office stating that they were not going to reopen a PO in Ardross even part time. The door hadn't been closed completely. The Ardross Community Hall had offered to host a PO, but this had been rejected. As usual people at the meeting expressed surprise that there had been a PO in Ardross and that they would have used it had they known.

5. John Edmondson explained that following on from the discussions about compliance with the new Scottish Fire regulations at the last meeting he had asked an electrician to come and have look and see how difficult it was and an approximate cost. The upshot was that unless you lived in a bungalow installation could prove quite difficult, 1:11:26 but the basic cost of the actual equipment would probably be in the region of £130.

Alison Gordon stated that she had been on the Scottish Government website about the Regulations, the CO, heat and smoke alarms were meant to be installed by February 2021 - this had been extended to February 2022 (although not actually passed). She was thinking in the region of £150-200 per household. The Chair thought that the agreement had been to just contribute towards the cost of the alarms and not the labour. Bill Robins didn't think that we should buy the equipment and after contributions from Cllr Maxine Smith and Willie Beattie and also Calvert Stinton to the discussion it was agreed that a flat sum be offered, the value of which was to be decided. This would make it a lot easier to administrate and it would also encourage the use of a professional to undertake the installation.

The detail was then discussed. Although Ian Duncan thought that private rented accommodation should have the grant available to them; Sandra Cunliffe thought that the landlords should not be benefiting from this. Indeed legislation already required these devices to be fitted. Alison Gordon proposed that the sum of £200 flat rate. This was seconded by Bill Robins. Payment would be on copy invoice in retrospect and Alison Gordon would administrate the fund; Ruaridh Waugh offering to help with the paperwork too. The fund would be available to all households in the Ardross Community Council area. Retrospective applications would be accepted. All subject to Alison Gordon checking the legislation. 1:21:33 6. The contents of the Treasurer’s Report previously circulated were noted.

Cllr Maxine Smith left the meeting.

8. The Housing in the Countryside Supplementary Guidance was discussed briefly. John Edmondson though that it was an excellent document and was minded to write and tell Planners as such unless there were any strong feelings on the subject. It was good to see alternatives to slate and harling being considered as building materials finally.

The Planning application 20/04568/FUL was then discussed. It appeared that the applicant was trying to overcome a condition on a previous application that had ensured that the self-contained unit or rather house was legally attached to the main house; it couldn't be sold off as a separate dwelling. Sandra Cunliffe thought that this was underhand, and what then is the precedent? Was there any guarantee that it wasn't to be a second let or for holiday accommodation? They were two large buildings in any case. Alison Gordon thought that we should object if it was two houses and it was agreed that we ask the Planners to set a Condition that the two

Page !5 of 6! 1:34:04 dwellings could not be disposed of separately and to mention about the ramping in front of one of the buildings.

Ian Duncan and Sandra Cunliffe left the meeting.

9. James McTaggart gave a brief run down of Kildermorie’s position in the overall project. And a history of the limited involvement of AO with Kildermorie Estate. AO had made it clear that any proposal for Kildermorie Estate would have to seek further funding from the ACC. Personally and this was the position of AO as well he felt that the Kildermorie Estate should get some funding, but he could see that the level of funding might be something the ACC would want to discuss.

John Edmondson explained that it was never the position that we weren't going to recommend that Kildermorie Estate receive a some kind of grant towards their 1:35:57 broadband installation, in a separate application to the Ardross CC. AO treated hard installs on an individual basis, Kildermorie was a hard install. Hard installs were assessed cost against benefit.

It was the understanding of AO that the installation for Kildermorie utilised an off grid relay at the Coire Na Cloiche wind farm. This was a technology that AO were not keen on. They were powered by a small and solar panels with a battery power pack. They suffered in winter and extreme conditions and the power packs which eventually needed replacing, were expensive.

Alison Gordon wanted to understand that why it was retrospective application and that none of the costs and details had been agreed beforehand. James didn't have a clear answer to that. 1:46:28 James McTaggart, Kelly Falkiner, Jane Smith, Margaret and Calvert Stinton left the meeting. This left members of the Community Council and Gunta Friedenelde.

Community Councillors then discussed some of the issues to with the Kildermorie connection: the number and nature of the properties; the capacity of the Ardross Network; the precedents for other properties in Ardross; the technical nature of the Kildermorie connection. Ironically the whole cost of the installation would have been funded by a Government grant had it been put forward as a proposal a few months ago.

It was agreed that the Secretary compile some questions for approval and then a letter given the discussions on the subject before sending to Kildermorie Estate.

Recapping it was also agreed that a letter should go to the ACW. Bruce Marshall would talk to Richard Smith as well. The ACW had had a meeting on Friday the 11th December, to discuss a plan, but despite being a Director of the ACW he wasn't told what the plan was, he had been kept in the dark, but he said that he would make it clear to Richard that the Ardross CC needed to know what was involved and the cost, we couldn’t just sign a blank cheque.

Next Management Meeting on 11th January 2021 at 8.00pm to be held via Zoom

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