Have done the survey. I think a priority should be to get all the stalls tenanted. The People’s market especially has a good few empty stalls which is sad. It has also been mentioned before with TJ Hughes going there is not the natural flow of people across to the market entrance. The arcade leading down to the butchers market from the main street also has a few empty shops.
A good idea for the council could be reduced (even free) rents for new stalls for 6/12 months to encourage people to start up. Is it the council who totally own the markets (and the arcade shops) and who are effectively the landlords?
The main problem with town is the fact it is split into “old town” and eagles meadow – I know this must be seen as a problem as the 101 hoppa bus was introduced (has this been effective? – opinions seem mixed!). Though I don’t think there are any easy answers, most places like Wrexham are having a difficult time at the moment.
Going off topic, but it is a real shame that the John Lewis development as the anchor for the new development pulled out (BBC NEWS | Wales | North East Wales | John Lewis pulls out of town). That would have been a real draw for a medium size town (i.e JL are not in Chester). This might have also have left M&S in the main street (though they needed a bigger store) I’m always underwhelmed by Debenhams in general – its a shop of concessions really.
Any thoughts from anyone?