Last updated 14:49, Thursday, 10 April 2008

Reader John Mooney offers his assessment of troubles on the high street

AS A native of Whitehaven (a marra?), a former trader and current resident/shopper, I have been reading with interest the articles and features of recent weeks in relation to the lack of retail development in the area.

My interest was peaked due to the fact that, for several years now, I have bemoaned the poor service and lack of interest shown by our elected council in regard to advancement and regeneration of our once great town.

The problems we are now facing are not new, and nor are they unexpected. What we have here is a body of men and women who seem to be suffering from some sort of ostrich syndrome, where they believe if they bury their heads in the sand and ignore the problems they will go away.

This is a fallacy. It doesn’t happen like that: if you don’t take control, the problem just intensifies.

So is there a solution? Is there a magic formula that can turn this one-horse town into a thriving metropolis of commerce and stability? Well for starters we need to stop playing the blame game. Retailers blame the council. The council blames central government. The government blames world economics for the downturn in trade. Everybody blames everybody else.

Rising costs and increased legislation are the main contributing factors.

Why are there so many empty shops in Whitehaven? Simple: The businesses won’t come because the shoppers aren’t here, the shoppers won’t come because the businesses aren’t here. A Catch-22 situation.

How do we address the problem? Steps have been made to attract tourism to the area but to what end? Millions have been spent developing The Beacon, millions have been spent developing the marina and waterfront areas. But what greets our visitors when they move away from the sea and head towards the town centre? An abundance of cafes, takeaways and hairdressers.

Do we really need more of the same? I accept the fact that a shop front will look much better featuring photos of some well presented hairstyling or the latest menu from foreign parts rather than whitewash covered glass and a ‘To Let’ sign! But that is not all we are about.

Council planners claim they are powerless to dictate what a shop will be used for. I disagree. Most premises are licensed for specific duties – retail, hot/cold food, etc. so any new tenants or owners would have to apply for a change of use. This is the point where some sort of control can be imposed. Or maybe our new motto should read: “Welcome to Whitehaven-Beacon, Boats, Bouffant and Burgers”. It has a certain charm to it!

Several ideas have been suggested to improve facilities, most of which seem to be derided as too expensive, a folly, not for the good of the town... therein lies the problem: what do we want in the town? What would be acceptable?

MP Jamie Reed has now stepped into the breach and is throwing his weight behind several motions. Although he is playing his cards quite close to his chest, several motions have been suggested including compulsory purchase orders (CPOs) or buying up empty shops. CPOs are fine if they are being augmented in order to drive down the rental costs, but who is going to manage these properties?

Both Copeland Borough Council and Whitehaven Development Company already own premises which are currently sitting empty and unused.

Mr Reed also claims he is in discussion with a number of chain companies. Are these the people that will benefit from the discounted rents? These cheaper premises would be better employed as an incentive for new start-up businesses, maybe working in conjunction with other established schemes.

Whitehaven has a proud tradition of independence and independents – small individual retailers, offering a more personal, perhaps even quirky service. We do not need, nor should we crave a town centre dominated by mainstream shops. Look no further than Workington, a once vibrant shipping port, reduced to a faceless, soulless, vacuous cacophony of neon lights and gauche facades, the same as every other town and city across the land.

Why would visitors travel to a town that is a carbon-copy of the high street they’ve left behind?

I feel we should be making more of the variety and personality offered by some of the traders in Whitehaven (shops such as Strange Fruit, Tenth Bull, Board!, Vanilla) – small businesses that need our support and our encouragement.

Obviously this cannot take away the importance of major brand investment. We need to feed the monster in order to protect our offspring.

Remember: Small shops – use them or lose them. You have been warned!