Cullen dinosaur saved from extinction
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
A dinosaur on top of a shop roof in Cullen has been saved from extinction.
The massive head, which divides opinion in the Moray seaside town, had been set for the chop because it was put up without planning permission.
But members of Moray Council local review body gave it a roar of approval yesterday by voting five to three in favour of keeping the structure in place.
The group's chairman Marc Macrae said: "The dinosaur brings people from near and far, and kids come from Inverness to see it.
"Both local shops and local hotels are very much in support."
The dinosaur is on Barlink Road, which is in the picturesque village's conservation area.
Yesterday's decision went against the recommendations of the council's own planning officers who stated that the head detracted from rather than enhanced its surroundings.
Cllr Macrae (Fochabers/Lhanbryde, Conservative) said: "Officers suggest it would be better placed in a theme park. But there’s things in Elgin I wouldn’t place in a conservation area.
"Dinosaurs have a relationship to Cullen.
"During the permian and triassic periods 280 million years ago, theropods actually walked along the beach at Cullen."
He was seconded by Derek Ross (Speyside/Glenlivet, Independent) who joked: "I think many of us here have been accused of being dinosaurs. Over the last six years certainly I have.
"I’m giving a thumbs-up to something I think will be an asset to the local community."
However fellow Speyside Glenlivet councillor Juli Harris (SNP) felt she had to support the 62 people who had lodged objections.
She said: “We make decisions on applications for windows and restoration in conservation areas.
"If we’re asking them to stick to the rules, surely something like a dinosaur head plonked on a building that's in disrepair does nothing to enhance the area.
Cllr Harris added that she felt the dinosaur was "tacky" and could pose a danger in stormy weather.
She was seconded by Amber Dunbar (Elgin North, Conservative), who said: "I’m concerned that it has compromised the appearance of the conservation area, and I’m worried of the precedent it would set."
Cullen Antiques Centre applied to the council for planning permission.
Following today's decision the dinosaur can now remain in place for at least the next five years.
It has been described as "monstrous" and "ghastly" by some who objected to it.
However it also had 53 letters of support, with some people describing it as "fun", "novel" and "quirky".
Contrary to widespread but mistaken opinion the Cullen dinosaur is not a Tyrannosaurus Rex.
Instead, it's a Carnotaurus which lived sometime between 71 and 69 million years ago.
Unlike their more famous cousins, these meat-eaters had horns.
About 25ft long, it's thought they were very fast and had a highly developed sense of smell.
