Backing for yet another big store but what’s the big plan behind it?
DOES Rawtenstall need yet another supermarket?
That’s the question many of us have been asking in recent weeks since it was confirmed Aldi want to move to the area.
The obvious answer is, of course, no.
No town the size of Rawtenstall needs two Tescos, an Asda, a Marks & Spencer food hall and a Lidl all within two miles of the town centre, with a Morrison’s for good measure a little further down the road in Bacup.
Indeed, the decision by the Co-op to pull out of Bacup within two years of Morrison’s opening up in the town has not gone down particularly well there – and rather proves the point.
There is, however, a bigger issue at stake surrounding the expansion of the newlyopened retail park at New Hall Hey. And that’s what exactly the big plan for Rawtenstall town centre really is, if a big a plan exists at all.
Assuming the new development gets approved – and there’s every reason to assume it will – within 18 months we will have a retail park with seven major shops on there – including the three already open – plus some sort of eatery or coffee shop.
Along with the new McDonald’s opening up on the other side of the dual carriageway, the entrance to Rawtenstall will be pretty much like the main entrance to any other town in the UK – dominated by big retail names.
That’s fine, as far as it goes, but there’s precious little evidence that anything is being done to benefit the local traders who depend on getting people into Rawtenstall’s true town centre – in and around Bank Street – to survive. If anything, by approving the expansion to New Hall Hey, Rossendale Council will essentially create a mini second town centre which will compete with the existing town centre – at a time when traders in and around Bank Street will be enduring the major upheaval due to be triggered by the notneeded new bus station in the town centre.
Of course, 100 new jobs are to be welcomed and there is a very strong argument that says if big business wants to invest here, they should be welcomed with open arms, and indeed they should.
But who at Futures Park is assessing the price local traders might pay?
From everything I’ve know about our local traders, they are not nimbys who oppose any change which could make their lives harder. Indeed, time and again they overcome various challenges – new supermarkets, neverending roadworks and so on – and the town centre is richer for their dedication.
But where’s the plan which shows that Rossendale Council is going to make sure the new retail development benefits the local traders?
The New Hall Hey roundabout effectively cuts the town centre in two at the moment, and there has to be a plan which encourages people to park their cars at the new retail park and walk into the main town centre.
Because parking can be tricky in Rawtenstall at the best of times – and you can pretty much guarantee it will become harder as bus station work gets under way. Approving a new retail park at the same time surely runs the risk of changing shopping habits for good – and not for the better.
Rawtenstall is almost unique in that it has the potential to be developed but also has something special to preserve. That’s a precious situation to be in and requires careful consideration. I’m not sure a retail park on the edge of town does Rawtenstall justice.