Local people and businesses are to be asked for their ideas to regenerate Fort William town centre – which currently has around 15 empty shops on its High Street.
They will be invited to a development workshop in March to help create a masterplan for breathing new life into the Lochaber town.
Highland Council has gained Scottish Government funding for the workshop, which will last at least a day and possibly longer, depending on the interest shown by local people.
Corrine O’Hagan, who runs a hairdressers and florists shop on the High Street, yesterday welcomed the idea of local people being consulted on future development plans.
She said: “The High Street is really bad.
“It’s an absolute nightmare trying to make a living here.
“If they want to fill the empty shops they need to reduce the rent and rates. It’s far too expensive at the moment. If they don’t do anything, everyone is going to leave and there will be no shops left.”
Councillor Brian Murphy, Fort William and Ardnamurchan, said a lot of people were unhappy with the number of vacant shops in the High Street, but he pointed out that it was a UK-wide problem.
He said: “We need to get the community together and get everyone to agree on what they want to see happen in the town.
“I don’t see it as being just about the High Street, it is about coming up with a masterplan for the whole town centre, including other empty buildings and vacant sites.”
Mr Murphy pointed out that they would need to identify uses for the old police station, and buildings currently used as offices by Highland Council that will become vacant when the local authority moves into the old high school building in Achintore Road.
“We are also still keen to see some kind of marina and cruise ship development on the lochside, so there are lots of opportunities,” said the councillor.
Fort William Community Council chairman, Neil Clark, said the workshop would provide an opportunity for local people to come up with a “wish list” of things they would like to see happen in Fort William.