Oban North Pier Pontoons, and the Harbour Building, have made a substantial contribution to the marine tourism offer of the town, and the wider P站色情片 and Bute area, according to an independent review.
The council鈥檚 Business Continuity Committee today (16 April) considered a report showing that the pontoons have out-performed original forecasts and that the additional vessels and visitors they attract to Oban have made a positive impact to the local economy.
End of year figures for 2019 showed 4,196 boat nights were recorded which created 17,326 additional visitors to Oban. At an average spend of 拢47 person, this means additional tourist spend in Oban of 拢814,322. These figures do not include passengers disembarking from cruise ships visiting the town.
The modern, step-ashore pontoon facility, complete with 36 finger-berth pontoons and a concrete floating breakwater, opened for business, ahead of schedule, in July 2017, offering access to Oban town centre for marine visitors.
The addition of the North Pier Building provides dedicated showers, toilets, changing area and secure storage lockers for maritime visitors as well as four commercial spaces including a harbour-master鈥檚 office, a shop, operator鈥檚 office and meeting room available for hire. The developments have created three point five full time jobs, one more than anticipated.
This major project to maximise Oban Bay and Harbour, part of the CHORD town centre investment, is now officially complete.
Councillor Gary Mulvaney, Policy Lead for Financial Services and Major Projects, said:
鈥淭he blue economy is vitally important to Oban and the wider Lorn area, including a number of economically fragile communities based on nearby islands. The new facilities provide a focal point for marine-based activity, providing a place of welcome at the North Pier to maritime visitors and businesses.
鈥淭he transformation is having a positive impact on the town鈥檚 tourism economy as we now have a high-quality welcome ashore at a prominent town centre location which means visitors will have direct access to Oban鈥檚 services and facilities.鈥
The total CHORD pontoon funding was 拢1.5m with additional funding of 拢700,000 from the Scottish Government鈥檚 Recycled Capital Grant Fund (RCGF) and 拢300,000 from Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE).