GALLERY: Glass smash closes part of Highland capital retail park
"Dangerous buildings notice" served banning access to affected stores.
Last updated 3rd Jan 2018
"They need to err on the side of caution and if that means closing shops in the meantime then so be it" - CLLR KEN GOWANS
A panel of glass has smashed at the Inshes Retail Park in Inverness, leading to several businesses being served with a temporary notice to close by safety officers.
The damage was reported in the area around Deichmann Shoes on Tuesday night by a gritter driver, with building standards officers then on the scene to section off the affected part of the park.
Speaking to MFR News, Councillor for Inverness South Ken Gowans said: "Clearly the safety of the Inverness public are the primary concern and it's also concerning that this has come very shortly after a recent incident at the Inverness Retail Park (on the A96) and I think we need to make sure that the proper checks take place."
Back in November in the run-up to Christmas, the majority of the Inverness Retail Park was shut following safety issues around the glass canopy surrounding the walkway from Tesco Extra to Vue Cinema. Several businesses were also closed on that occasion while checks were carried out.
Mr Gowans added: "I think it's difficult to say if this is a consistent fault with the retail parks, but what we need to do is to take the appropriate steps.
"They need to err on the side of caution and if that means closing shops in the meantime then so be it.
"Public safety is paramount and it needs to be investigated, whether this is the same kind of problem as seen at Inverness Retail Park - or whether it's been caused by the recent cold snap - we don't yet know, but it must be thoroughly investigated."
In a statement, Highland Council said, "Environmental Health and Building Standards have been on site at Inshes Retail Park to investigate, following a shattered glass panel in the canopy above a shop unit.
"There are no injured parties.
"All the units that have the same type of canopy have been shut (Hobby Craft to Matalan).
"There is no evidence as to what has caused the panel to fail and Building Standards therefore intend to serve a dangerous buildings notice prohibiting access to these units until the panels are removed or proved to be safe."
Inshes Retail Park glass pane falls and smashes
