Fears Chichester could be ghost town
Residents and businesses fear Chichester will become a ghost town if shops in the city centre remain empty for the winter.
Buildings with boarded-up windows greet visitors from the eastern side of the city centre shops at Market Road – hardly a welcome sight for potential shoppers.
William Hill ceased trading in December last year and the premises have remained empty since then, The Bull Inn pub is boarded up, as is the Bottoms Up Wine Superstores shop, which has gone into administration.
Shop units at Little London Walk remain empty and its major shopping magnet – the post office – has already been axed.
Colin Butterworth is the manager of Male Concept hairdressers, which sits in between the empty Bull Inn and Bottoms Up.
He said: "People have left because of the recession. I think these places need to look a bit more presentable. It's looking like a bit of a ghost town, really."
Jess Christian, of Fishbourne, said: "It's quite sad because it's a lovely city. The empty shops are quite concentrated, which doesn't look that good."
Footfall figures for shoppers in East Street have dropped compared with last year. July is usually the peak month for shoppers.
For 2009 the footfall for the month was 1,253,851, this year was recorded at 1,187,169 – a slight dip.
However Little London centre manager Louise Harwood said things were very much on the up. A ladies fashion and accessories store is to move into the front unit at Little London.
And Manuka Whole Foods Ltd, which sells organic food, is soon expected to open at the back of the Little London centre.
She said: "We're receiving quite a bit of interest to let units. There doesn't seem to be a pattern with shoppers these days, it's very much up or down."
A Chichester District Council spokesman said: "Little London has recently been through a refurbishment to improve its appearance and experience to shoppers. It is often the case that during such times, footfall drops off and takes a while to recapture its shoppers.
"Enquiries to take over pubs, like the Bull Inn, are dealt with by the breweries unless there is a change of use. We haven't heard of any reason yet why it is not likely to re-open."
Plans have also been put forward to complete the transformation of an old hardware store at a prime location in East Street into a shop and restaurant.
A new cafe named Real Eating has also already opened at Stocklund House in East Street.
Email to a friend
Print this page- Decision to change bus subsidies comes into effect in West Sussex
- LIVE RACING: Goodwood May Festival, Day 1
- LAURA CARTLEDGE Life’s Like That...Secret revealed – and it turned out to be a piece of cake for us all
- VOTE: Do potential developments pose a threat to the national park?
- Marking the Diamond Jubilee in Chichester
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Chichester
Saturday 26 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 14 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 24 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 13 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 13 mph
Wind direction: South
