How (not) to save our towns
Tuesday 14th April 2009, 11:29AM BST.
Have you walked up your local high street recently? Have you seen the boarded-up buildings and charity shops? Well, don’t worry, says blogger Andrew Owen: someone has a plan.
Hazel Blears, the communities secretary, was today announcing a scheme to breathe life into Britain’s growing number of ghost towns.
No, she’s not going to help struggling businesses being crippled by high rates and the seemingly unstoppable growth of the supermarkets. Don’t be silly.
No, what she wants to do is take empty buildings in towns across Britain and turn them into temporary “social enterprises” such as art galleries and learning centres.
Up to £3m will be on offer to communities to find creative ways of reducing the “negative impact” of empty shops.
Yes, instead of finding ways to use empty shops to generate jobs, we’re going to put up a few pictures. Inspired.
She’s also planning to give community businesses – such as post offices and pubs – extra protection during the downturn.
Yes, that’s extra protection announced by the same government which has taxed pubs to the point of unprofitability, allowed supermarkets to kill off all competition and sell alcohol at a knock-down rate, and seen to it that post offices have closed left, right and centre.
It’s a bit like someone setting fire to your house and then trying to sell you a smoke alarm.
And there was me starting to worry that nobody in charge had any ideas for getting us out of the mess we’re in.
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What are we doing to our society?
This is what happens when you allow the 4 big supermarkets to run the country while the government and the councils roll over in front of them like hapless puppies.
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Splendid idea. I’d love a nice little community gallery that I could use to sell my photography work. Oh, wait, nobody has the spare cash to buy any of it.
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Its no use saying “shut the supermarkets” if people want them they will be there. You might as well have said “stop television it will kill the cinema” Its called progress. We have to go with the flow.
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sorry but i disagree with the author of this letter , using old empty shops for a good use like that well i think tis quite a good idea actually
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I think it’s a great idea – you people want the govt. to back off our controlling our lives – that goes for our business too. You can’t stop the big supermarkets trading. We must encourage lower rents on smaller shops for new enterprise and yes, art if nessasary – I’d rather see some nice art than a CLOSING DOWN sign.
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Should never of given women the vote.
We are all now suffering the Thatcher years (voted in by women) and then we have plonkers like Blears coming up with stupid ideas. Just what the country needs.
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How about this for an idea? Gordon Brown back pedals and does another U-turn this time to ensure landlords have to pay rates on empty commercial properties.
This would force landlords to lower prices instead of being sheltered from the effects of the downturn. I have been looking for business premises in Shrewsbury for about 8 months and none of the places I have seen have been let but the landlords arent dropping their prices, you would have thought there was a cartel operating in the area, either that or we are not in a recession…
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I’d rather see some nice art than a CLOSING DOWN sign.
But I’d rather see less officious council employees and lower business rates, than a business forced to close through red tape and taxes.
Hazel Blears again seems to be out of touch with reality – having taken a back seat while post offices were hammered and shopping centres decimated, she now creeps out to express shock and horror at the result. That’s typical of what happens when everything you want to buy for your second house comes out of taxpayer-funded expenses – a sort of Marie Antoinette syndrome. Art galleries are not what will turn our finances around, that’s what businesses do Hazel.
No doubt, those businesses that still struggle on will have to foot the business rates bill for the art galleries as well. Once again, productivity subsidising aesthetics.
If you want things smartened up, getting the landlords to put the shop in order and lower rents and rates to get new businesses in may be one way ahead.
More cake please, Hazel, I’ve run out of bread.
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classic labour spin over substance, what they need only tories will offer which is less taxes, cut taxes now and get rid of the EU and labour
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I feel they should come up with a better idea. I have seen these places used as community drop in centres, and all they become is closed up buildings with posters on and drop outs hanging around outside! As for Art gallerys , all very well but as already commented on, no one has any money to buy.
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Do I note a touch of sarcasm here??? Many a true word, etc etc.
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at least they are doing something, doing nothing is easy but more costly in the long term
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classic tory – do nothing let the market sort it, look where that got us
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Lets face it Shrewsbury has nothing to offer and was in decline prior to the current economic climate. Since 911 tourism has dropped. However the town centre has no individuality,looks the same as any other precinct and has no attraction to would be visitors. I mean one charity shop looks much the same as tother.
For a long time now it has had traffic congestion problems, poor facilities “anyone seen a loo?” high parking charges and a fickle Park & Ride system. To find a dependable taxi service is a rarety.
But all this has been planned for by the appropriate authority who have sanctioned the large retail developments at Meole Brace and Harlescott. I don’t suppose many farmers travel into town now on market day since the cattle market was relocated.
Added to that it is cheaper to shop online or nip over to the Wellington market where the parking is free!!!!
So accepting that Shrewsbury town has died? Is there any chance that the swimming baths now be moved out of town? This would make it accessible, reduce congestion,release parking space & possibly be heated by the planned new waste disposal works.
All the best with the new decorated shops!
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