Rod Michie

In response to Mr Scott's concerns the Ness District Fishery Board have been fully invovled at all stages. We have worked with them to address all their initial concerns. Dr Keith Williams MIFM, Ness & Beauly Fisheries Trust, has advised us at all stages. The only water that will be abstracted from Loch Ness will be for domestic use. This is estimated at a maximum of 5 cubic metres per day, equivalent to the amount the turbines at Foyers can remove in seconds. Loch water will be used as a cooling/heating medium for the heating system but on a closed circuit basis.

Alan Scott

I am concerned about your plans to take water from Loch Ness. Have you discussed this element of the plans with the Ness District Fishery Board? Water abstraction is becoming such a problem on Loch Ness that in low water conditions this year a valuable nursery lade on the River Ness dried up and young salmon and trout died. Fishing for salmon and trout is an significant element of tourism in the area, with anglers proven to spend more per head than any other visitors.

Darrel-John Paterson

This is a great Idea, this will encourage more tourist to come to the area and will create more jobs for the area. The higher the demand for accommodation and restaurants will grow which is great for Loch Ness and Inverness.
I hope that everything goes to plan!

DJP, Loch Ness Country House Hotel

Aulikki Butt

I think the plan is good and I like the design of the visitor centre. It looks good and fitting for the area and I hope that it will also be used for art/craft exhibitions and that the shop will have for sale good quality local craft and art instead of endless Nessie tat.

Joyce Joy

I like it. The loch has always been "The Attraction" in this area for visitors, its a beautifull loch and visitors should be able to get "A taste of it". The plans look great

I would love to work here

Penny Dryden

This looks like a brilliant development. Are you planning to arrange pick ups (by boat) from Fort Augustus for the trips?

Best regards

Penny

jim

Will other boat owners be able to use the jetty for overnight stays ( at a cost, of course )

Mark Fischer

Congratulations to Cameron Webster for producing a very thoughtful design which involves using local suppliers for the building. I believe that this was the right choice offering iconic views of the loch whilst not necessarily being an eyesore on the shores of Loch Ness.

What Jacobite are doing here is making the tourism experience all the more better for visitors to Inverness and the Loch compared to the lacklustre facilities which they are currently using at the Clansman.

I wish the business all the best in this exciting new prospect for our area

Mark Fischer

Congratulations to Cameron Webster for producing a very thoughtful design which involves using local suppliers for the building. I believe that this was the right choice offering iconic views of the loch whilst not necessarily being an eyesore on the shores of Loch Ness.

What Jacobite are doing here is making the tourism experience all the more better for visitors to Inverness and the Loch compared to the lacklustre facilities which they are currently using at the Clansman.

I wish the business all the best in this exciting new prospect for our area

sal bridges

Here's my comments as a regular visitor to your shores and a professional Landscape Architect:

The Anta design looks most promising in terms of a design that is contempory but sensitive to context but the submission needs more images that explain the materials that would be used.

Aubrey Claridge

This looks like a brutalist bunker construction from the cold war era and is entirely inappropriate for this landscape

Carol Wilson

I think the first 2 designs are hideous, the second looks like a pumping station !!.

The second 2 are certainly streets ahead and I have to agree that having that view you need lots of glass to enjoy it. Cameron Websters is the front runner for me but it would be good to see a local girl's designs. Coming from Abriachan she would hopefully go that extra mile to make it stunning.

Robin Murray

Hi - I like the thought of the broch but views out from the building are important; I wonder if a wood, glass and steel structure would look more pleasing from the outside whilst giving customers the benefit of those iconic views across the loch? Making use of sustainable Scottish wood (to a certain extent) might help the building to blend or "fold" into the scenery.

Mr. lockhart

The best Graduate Architect for this job is Anna Webster also, a naturally gifted artist as well. Contact her privately through her Dad, Chas Webster owner of Upper Balmore Croft , Abriachan, Loch Ness. I feel these designs are all lacking. Do it right. Anna is the best - few can do what this young lady can do, believe me. She grew up in the area works for a firm in Glasgow but does private work also.

Colin Evans

All the drawings seem follow the modern architectural obsession with flat facets, rectangles, sharp corners, acres of glass and polished stone. To hope to fit in it should have none of these. We had enough heartache with Foyers Power Station. Don't make something best suited to the banks of the Thames. Make something that looks like it grew up with the mountains, the trees and the waterfalls. Please

Bobby Chinwag

Too hard to judge on these images alone but on the strength of past form it'd be great to see a Gareth Hoskins or a Cameron Webster building here. I don't understand the reluctance to build contemporary architecture on a site like this. Seems a bit early to vilify the schemes and contemporary architecture in general at such an early design stage.

Billy Manson

From these first designs I think that the Gareth Hoskins design looks like a retaining wall for falling cliff face or a small hydro project.
McKenzie Strickland design looks like a WWII bunker.
The Cameron Webster design is a good looking building with plenty of glass to make the most of the views and light, but I will agree with John Ashworth that a building of this type has no place on the shores of Loch Ness.
The Anta design would then be my choice, but a reluctant one. As Alan Humphries says, materials are an important consideration and wood and glass would be my choices too.
Overall report, 'Must try harder'.

Dave Warnlock

We have to remember the delicate nature of the site. As far as Im aware the whole area is really important for the moray firth dolphin, and any impact on the foreshore could have a detrimental effect of the migratory behaviour of these endangered animals. Has anyone considered an impact assessment on them?

Steven

I think the Cameron Webster design looks amazing and is way ahead of the others. Light and airy with an outdoor experience are just what we should have on the shores of Loch Ness. We badly need a quality visitor centre in the area and if we get this right it should bring more jobs, hundreds more visitors to the area and will boost the local economy -Everyone's a winner!
Thank you for giving us the chance to voice our opinion

John Ashworth

Architecture should speak about the present but it should also be sympathetic to its surroundings. The only thing that the generic glass and steel box designs will shout to future generations is that we have lost our imagination and sympathy with the environment; such structures are evident in "modern" Tesco's and Bus Stations throughout Scotland's towns... please don't bring them to the shores of Loch Ness! Looking at the beautiful image at the top of this web page makes me realise that we really owe it to our landscape and future generations to make something that has an enduring design to be proud of. The Anta drawings look like they could have something worthy of the landscape but we need to see more detail. Great of you guys to open this up to public debate. Thanks.

theo

UGH! Why would you do something so modern that takes so much away from the historical beauty that is Scotland? If you're going to spend that much money and build something that big, make it look like a castle, not some cement block that got plopped there.

A Robins

A new harbour will be very welcome to Loch Ness.

I love the Cameron Webster design. Light and airy.

The other designs strike me as rather enclosed with no real views. The Cameron Webster will allow visitors an almost 'outdoor' experience.

Looking forward to hearing the outcome.

Alan Hardwick

Anta Architecture's drawings look fun, but it is difficult to visualise from any of the pictures on the web site what the final structures will look like and what visual impact they will have on this beautiful area.
Exciting stuff. Crack on and post some better plans please.
Good luck.
Alan Hardwick

Mrs Susan Treehorn

I must say what a brilliant idea. This really is much needed. I think that what would be great is if this building was modern and said something about modern Scotland, and not some hopeless reinvention of our past. It would be a wonderful and confident thing if our architects built relevant things which speak about our present. The Anta drawings suggest a present-day fortication of some sort...is this relevant? If i want fake castles i'll visit disney thank you very much. The Gareth Hoskins images show something fitting into the landscape...is'nt this more like it? Well done all concerned. I very much look forward to seeing how this all turns out!

Alan Humphries

The overall concept is good - it is difficult to tell from the website just how each plan would look in reality - the ANTA drawings are exciting but are only drawings! My main concern would be that natural materials should be used where possible, ie not concrete, mainly wooden interiors and exteriors, plus glass of course. I would also be in favour of local community involvement through a Trust or similar.

alex dickson

This is a great idea, and will have a positive impact. It has the potential to have a negative impact also. From the images on the website, the Gareth Hoskins entry looks the most exciting, and given the architects track record in delivering outstanding buildings of national and international importance, there background sits them in an excellent position to produce an excellent scheme.

Moray Macdonald

Just what the area needs, about time we had a decent visitor facility by Loch Ness.

Sylvia Longbottom

From the website it is not very clear exactly where the
location is, eg in relation to existing facilities. I agree with many of
the workshop participants comments, but would be particularly keen to
see safe and easy access for non powereed craft such as
canoes/kayaks/smaller sailing boats, although as I am not sure on exact
location, I don't know how sheltered the water would be. One thing that
Loch Ness does lack is somewhere where visitors can go to receive
tuition or just to hire these smaller craft. Such facilities would also
benefit local groups (schools, youth..).