Town centre bucking the trend

WARRINGTON town centre is bucking the trend, with footfall increasing by 44,000 in July, compared to the same period last year, according to the borough council’s controlling Labour group.
More than 12,000 people attended a programme of summer events during July and August, with music, arts and cultural festivals showcasing the town’s home-grown talent.
Labour councillors point out this has been achieved despite the difficult national economic climate.
Deputy leader of the council Mike Hannon (pictured) said: “The town centre is one of the Labour administration’s stated priorities and I am delighted by the increase in footfall we are seeing.
“We’ve done some small things like improving and increasing the summer floral displays to enhance the look and attractiveness of the town centre but we also have a lot of exciting big ticket ideas.
“For example, to give a further boost to local traders we have looked at the pricing structure for parking in the market car park and to attract more shoppers to the town centre we have introduced a reduced car parking charge of £1 for three hours for the market car park, together with a free shuttle bus from the bus station to Warrington Market.”
At next week’s full council meeting Cllr Hannon will give details of other ideas he is driving forward.
These include:
* A programme of inexpensive street and footway resurfacing and road making renewal.
* Building makeovers in key areas, particularly with vacant shops and the market area.
* De-cluttering of signs in Lower Bridge Street and removal of illegal banners.
* Replanting and floral displays for the Autumn and Winter.
*Promoting street cafes and improving street furniture.
In addition, the council has developed a new marketing and promotions campaign for the town centre and introduced a new fast turnaround clean-up operation.
A new Autumn and Winter events programme starting with Warrington’s first Contemporary Arts Festival will take place at different venues across the town centre during September and October with ongoing exhibitions and more than 20 events planned during the month.
This will be followed by a month long Christmas programme with festive events and activities planned every weekend from mid November onwards up to Christmas.
Cllr Hannon added: “Work has already started on the 2012 and 2013 Town Centre events programmes – working closely with a range of partners we will ensure that attracting people to our town centre will continue to be a priority for us.
“Warrington town centre has huge potential for improvement and development in the longer term and we want to create a town centre that our residents deserve and will use and be proud of.”
Ray Rigby, chairman of Warrington Market Traders Association welcomed the proposals – particularly the reduced parking charges and a new free bus service between the market and the bus interchange.
He said: “This will hopefully encourage more people to use the award winning market which boasts the finest fish and meat hall in the North West.”