Town centre will continue to thrive

WARRINGTON town centre will continue to thrive despite missing out on being one of the first ‘Portas Pilot’ towns according to town centre champion Mike Hannon.
Cllr Hannon, deputy leader of the council with special responsibility for rejuvenating the town centre, said: “The work that we put into our Portas bid won’t go to waste as we had already pledged to deliver many of the planned improvements and quick wins for Warrington town centre.
“We’ve got a great team in Warrington who are committed to filling up empty shops, working together to put on new events and activities to entice more shoppers and visitors, and improving the environment to make our town a more pleasant place to be.”
Warrington has recently been successful in attracting money from the £10m ‘High Street Innovation Fund’ which over time will see more funding come into the town to tackle the problem of empty shops.
Cllr Hannon says there is even more positive news for Warrington on the horizon: “There are now so many more reasons for people to come to Warrington and to stay and spend money in the town. We’ve already reduced parking charges and started to offer a programme of arts, entertainment and cultural activities, as well as blitzing some of the ‘grot spots’. With all the buzz for the Rugby League World Cup in 2013, and the longer term regeneration of Bridge Street, we think Warrington town centre has a very bright future which we’re determined to make a reality.”
Out of more than 370 towns who bid for funding provided by the government following a competition launched by retail guru Mary Portas, the 12 successful towns were:
Bedford ,Croydon, Greater London, Dartford, Kent, Bedminster, Bristol, Liskeard, Cornwall, Margate, Kent, Market Rasen, Lincolnshire, Nelson, Lancashire, Newbiggin by the Sea, Northumberland,
Stockport, Greater Manchester, Stockton on Tees, North Yorkshire and Wolverhampton.