Inverness residents are being urged to have their say on the future of the city’s castle before a consultation closes later this month.
At least four options are being considered for revamping the key city centre building – including incorporating a new museum, library, art gallery or even creating a bespoke new wedding venue.
The exhibition showcasing options for the castle is currently on show at Inverness Museum and Art Gallery and runs until Friday, January 22.
Views collected from the public during the event will then be used to help a working group decide on the future of the building.
The group is jointly chaired by Inverness MSP and Scottish Government business and tourism minister Fergus Ewing.
He said: “We want to see a new life for the castle that builds on its existing attraction, giving visitors and locals alike a quality offering that encourages tourists to both visit and stay longer.
“These things can’t be rushed. In fact they shouldn’t be, if you think about the Scottish Parliament building contract being rushed and look at what happened there.
“Invernessians have shown great patience up until now. I would be extremely surprised were they not to persevere now that it appears there is much more momentum behind the castle becoming a tourist attraction instead of being the depository of the sheriff court.”
The castle currently houses the city’s sheriff court and also a number of offices within the north tower of the complex.
The Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service has offered a commitment to move out of the building if a suitable replacement is available – and work has started to create a £23million justice centre elsewhere in the city.
The exhibition offers four options for future use of the castle once the courts have moved on
Option one – which has an estimated cost of £9.5million – would relocate and expand the existing museum and art gallery.
Option two, which has an £8.6million price tag, would create a visitor centre in the current court building.
Option three would create a £10million major visitor attraction in the court complex.
And option four, which would cost £8.1million, would feature a family history room, wedding venue and self-catering tourist accommodation.