Don't let Watford become a ghost town
Posted by Claire Ward, MP for Watford, at 16:27, Tue 14 April 2009:
Watford MP, Claire Ward, has appealed to local politicians and businesses to join her in a campaign to prevent the centre of Watford becoming a ghost town of boarded up windows and derelict shops.
She said everyone should give their support to new Government measures announced today aimed breathing new life into towns and cities across Britain which are now feeling the full effects of the global recession.
Under the scheme announced by Hazel Blears, the Communities secretary, and Andy Burnham, the culture secretary, three million pounds will be made available to give to people who find creative reuse for shops and businesses which have gone bust.
Ms Ward said that the emergency measures being taken would allow planning rules to be relaxed to allow changes of use which would normally be against local guidelines. There would be facilities for small loans up to £1,000 for people who wanted to make use of empty shops, and temporary arrangements for landlords to allow them to rent empty premises on short term leases. Councils will also be urged to take control of empty shops until the recession ends.
The MP appealed to Lib Dem-run Watford council to work with the government, and where possible influence and implement initiatives locally "for the good of the whole community".
She went on: " Empty shops can be eyesores or crime magnets. Our ideas for reviving town centres will give communities the know how to temporarily transform vacant premises into something innovative for the community - a social enterprise, a showroom for local artists or an information centre - and stop the high street being boarded up.
'The Labour Government's town centre first planning rules and business rate deferments are also helping small businesses in more direct ways during this difficult time.
We all remember the boarded up shops during the recessions in the early 90s and 80s when town centres were left to sink or swim . I am sure we have the ingenuity and creativity here in Watford to come up with some imaginative ideas to avoid that.
'The recession is going to affect all of us. We all understand it's going to be tough. But we have two alternatives: do nothing, and let it run its course, or work together to do all in out power to give local people real help. I believe we should do all we can to help people through the recession, and that will be my focus in coming months.'
ends
Commenting on this message is now disabled.