Town centre faces battle to survive in economic storm
HIGH street shopping in Penzance is declining as a storm of events sends customers away from the town centre, according to shop owners.
Local resident Peter Waverly has documented the closure of 56 businesses around the town since September 2008 when the global banking crisis took hold.
And while there are signs of recovery, with shops like Tesco Express and Poundstretcher moving into vacant premises, he says the town has never in its history suffered "such a blow to its retail trade and to its vitality as a town".
Ongoing uncertainty over links to the Isles of Scilly, increasing parking fees, escalating business rates and popular out-of-town stores are all being blamed for threatening the resuscitation of Penzance's economy.
Managing director of Simpson's Brothers, Stuart Simpson, said: "It's a nice town with a fine heritage but it's slowly being ruined. Chain stores across the country are pulling out of town and business rates are going up – everything is against the town centre, full stop."
He added: "Trade has dropped, car parking is very expensive, and the development at Hayle is drawing people away from Penzance."
Lower business rates away from the high street encourage big chain stores to develop sites away from towns, he added.
Free parking, easy access and the lure of branded shopping at these centres are reducing foot-traffic on the streets, says Mr Simpson.
A third satellite supermarket, proposed for the heliport site, will not only draw more local shoppers away, but bleed the town of its commerce with the Isles of Scilly, he believes.
David Andrewartha, owner of the popular furnishings store based in Penzance, said he was concerned about the loss of trade from the islands.
He said: "I've been here since 1962 and this is the worst I've seen the town. We need chain stores. Good or bad, they bring people in and they can afford the rates, they would lift the place."
Mr Waverly has documented the closures over the past two years for the Penzance Archive.
He said: "To date there are 56 pictures on the archive's database. From an historical view this is a major event in the town's history. Never before has it suffered such a blow to its retail trade and to its vitality as a town. But putting history aside for a moment, such a parlous situation must provoke serious debate about how the town pulls itself round to become a major centre again.
"We are losing our status as a retail centre, as a place where progress happens, and our ability to do other things as a consequence. To break out of this stagnation something has to change if the town is to have a future for itself and for the generations that follow."
Penzance Chamber of Commerce chairman Mike Waters said the group was fighting hard to keep shoppers in Penzance.
He said high car parking charges left by Penwith District Council were a major issue at the heart of any decline in retail trade. Free parking offered on three Saturdays last year saw trade at some stores rise by 300%, he added.
"Fixing parking is one of the cures for getting people back," he said. "There are 24 shops vacant now, so things have improved. The chamber and the Penwith District Traders' Association are very aware of the problems and we are working to bring people back."
He said the chamber supported the Sainsbury's application and had been in discussion with them over how to mitigate any potential draw away from the town caused by another out-of-town operation.
"The main thrust of the mitigation was the way to get their customers into the town itself," he said.
"A couple of ideas put forward were to either reimburse shoppers' parking charges so people can come into town for a few hours and then visit Sainsbury's on the way home with their parking fees deducted from their shopping bill. The other idea was for Sainsbury's to develop a park and ride on their site with a free bus into town."
● Heliport latest: page 10. Letters and comment: page 47.
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by Fal resident, Falmouth
Friday, April 30 2010, 11:10PM
“P Lemon in Penryn
The problems in Falmouth do not lie with Tesco and co as you put it. Tesco has had it's shop in the town for nearly 40 years now and the likes of Dingles, Dorothy Perkins and Burtons also had premises in the town for many years. These are the type of shops that kept the town alive.
Is it no coincedence that when you lose shops that people want to shop in you lose the shoppers?
For many years you could come into Falmouth and pick up everything you needed. Not any more!
The blame needs to lie with the town council and the recently created post of town centre manager. They have allowed this to happen and stood by whilst the town has died. Many things could have been done over the years but have not.
People also don't wish to come here and sit in other people's rubbish. The town is filthy. I drive through part of the town every morning and have to negotiate people's bins spilling out into roads and onto pavements. It's disgusting. Not to mention the rubbish floating in the sea off every pier and quay in the town. Nobody wants to come here look out at our amazing waterway and see rubbish. We live in Cornwall not Calcutta for heavens sake!
All of this coupled with extortionate parking prices will ensure that Falmouth stays as dead as it is today.
It's about time our town councillors and town centre manager (pointless, money wasting position imho) stopped walking around with their eyes closed and started addressing some of the issues to encourage people back into the town.”
by TimV, Pz
Tuesday, April 27 2010, 3:08PM
“The decline of town centres is a national phenomenon, not just a local Cornish one. It has been caused by planners (i.e. local councils) aiding and abetting national chains to set up on the outskirts of settlements, beguiled by the promise of jobs and investment. The argument that new stores bring extra jobs should be exposed for the sham it is, when this involves the loss of jobs elsewhere. Further, development has been promoted in Truro at the expense of the peripheral towns. There is not even a level playing field for the small independent trader. The big firms can use their muscle to sell cheap and provide free parking and convenience. OK! So if Cornwall Council is serious about stopping the decline of our historic towns, and it should be, it should place an embargo on more out of town developments, particularly if suitable in-town sites are available. It should call a halt to more supermarket outlets, if an existing one already exists. It should make supermarkets pay rates on their car parks and introduce at least one day of free parking in council owned car parks. In addition it should see street cleaning of town centres as a top priority. The state of many is simply disgusting. Only with concerted joined-up thinking from the council (with a little help from the business community) will town centre decline be reversed.”
by Charles Henry 1945-(diuturnity), Somersetshire
Monday, April 19 2010, 10:42AM
“:| In their march towards a 'Third World', 'Bicycle Riding', 'Car Free' society; clearing town centres of 'TRAFFIC' when ever they can, Liberal-Democrats have NEVER understood the need for good access for the Motor Car, and how since the days of the Horse Drawn Carriage. . Our towns and cities have grown prosperous on the back of that 'Carriage Trade'. . With the growth of the Internet, the effort to bring in new 'services' and other attractions into town centres must now be re-doubled. . Prosperity has to be innovative and be 'grown', it won't just suddenly fall off the back of a lorry. . I declare an interest in us all continuing to have prosperous town and city centres.”
by David, St Austell
Monday, April 19 2010, 10:40AM
“Negative progress more like. As long as the councils continue to grant planning whenever a supermarket holds out its' wallet town centres up and down the country will decline. Where does the profit they make go? Not into the local economy but tax havens abroad and big dividends for the directors and shareholders.”
by x1234, penryn
Saturday, April 17 2010, 7:50PM
“Last time I visited Pz i nearly phoned the council and asked for my car park money back. Ghost town comes to mind. Spend more than 30 mins there and your doing well! get your Scillies link in place and it would do a world of good never mind a bunch of muppets trying to save a patch of rocks it woud attract investment which would lead to jobs and maybe god perish the thought some progress for the town. I visited there a couple of Sundays ago and can count the open shops on one hand (I do have 7 fingers on that hand tho lol!) I visit Fareham in Hampshire frequently and their car parks are free on bank holidays and Sundays and the town is packed (take note CCC!) it also helps when its more than Peacocks, Game and Smiths are open though. As for the retail park at Hayle taking trade away its called competition and how can 4 shops (one a coffee outlet) destroy a town? If you provided and alternative the people will come otherwise the the train station its the end of the line.”