John Dobbie, a former senior council official who later devoted his time to improving Broughty Ferry, has died aged 71.
He qualified as a valuations surveyor and held posts across the north of Scotland and Hong Kong before working for local authorities based in Dundee.
In later years he served as chairman of the former Broughty Ferry Development Trust and volunteered for Citizens Advice during the pandemic.
John Dobbie was born in Cowgate, Dundee, in November 1952, the son of David Dobbie, who went on to work at Michelin, and his wife Minnie (Low) who worked at DC Thomson and then Veeder-Rooot.
He had two brothers, James, who has lived in Brighton most of his life, and David, a forklift driver in Dundee.
As a child, the family moved to Douglas in Dundee. He was educated at Powrie Primary School and then had to persuade his father to let him progress to Morgan Academy.
After completing sixth year, John began work in the local authority’s assessor’s department while studying for his valuations surveying qualifications at college in Bell Street.
In Dundee he met his future wife, Shirley, and the couple married in her birthplace of Westray, Orkney, in July 1977. Their son, Malcolm was born in 1978 and daughter, Kathy, in 1980. Grandchildren followed in 2013 with the birth of Bethan, and then William in 2019.
In the late 1970s John moved into the private sector working for Graham and Sibbald in Inverness and living in Nairn.
In 1980, he was appointed valuations surveyor for Shetland Islands Council, a post he held for four years until a three-year spell in Hong Kong.
On the family’s return to Scotland, John joined Aberdeen District Council as valuations surveyor before taking up a similar post with the then Tayside Regional Council, and later, Dundee City Council.
During his career, John also worked with his professional body, the RICS, to assess and recruit new members.
He retired in 2010 but continued to do contracting work with Angus Council while he dedicated his time as a volunteer. He was a volunteer driver during the 2014 Commonwealth Games, transporting athletes around Dundee.
His daughter, Kathy Harrison, said: “Following his retirement, he was a well known member in the community where he lived, often seen walking his beloved pug.
“He was chairman of the former Broughty Ferry Development Trust and together with actor Brian Cox, unveiled the colourful lampposts on Beach Crescent in the Ferry.
“In his later years he volunteered for the Citizens Advice, working online through the Covid times.”
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