News / Fair Isle reels from company collapse
THE FAIR Isle community is reeling from debts of more than £50,000 after the main building firm behind constructing the islands’ new bird observatory went into receivership this week.
Orkney firm A H Wilson called in the administrators after losing money during the winter when construction equipment was left idle during bad weather.
On Thursday the last company employees were leaving the island, leaving the £4 million project unfinished.
Islanders meet with the Fair Isle Bird Observatory (FIBO) finance director on Saturday to find a way of helping the nine working households which have been hit hard by the company’s collapse.
FIBO is famous throughout the ornithological world and the thousands of visitors it attracts every year form the backbone of the islands’ economy, which supports about 70 people.
The project received £400,000 from Highlands and Islands Enterprise, £1.15 million from Shetland Islands Council and £1.9 million from the Scottish government’s rural development programme.
Work began in July 2009 and the original plan was for FIBO to open by Christmas. The accommodation facilities are understood to be ready, but other aspects of the project remain to be completed.
Fair Isle resident and accommodation provider Kathy Coull said: “It’s devastating. It is the last thing anyone would expect to happen to such a prestigious project, and we are looking at ways to redress the financial impact.”
Islanders do still want the observatory to be completed recognising its importance to the local community, but feel aggrieved that something designed to boos the local economy has left so many people seriously our of pocket.
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