State of the city centre

I am afraid I cannot let the comments by Nick Roberts in his Shop Closures letter, April 20, stand without correcting the facts.

The City Council and indeed senior City councillors, probably aimed at me, are not responsible for busking and trading licensing or the state of the pavements. These are the responsibility of the Conservative-led West Sussex County Council. Car parking, markets, licensing, planning covering shop use and advertising and the outdoor seating areas are all the responsibility of the Conservative-led District Council.

Since the last election in 2019, the City Council has started initiatives such declaring a Climate Change Emergency before the District Council and starting a Neighbourhood Plan.

Personally, I recently managed to get a member’s motion passed at CDC to form a multiagency City Centre Task Force to tackle many of the City Centre issues described by Nick Roberts.

However to his credit, his Chichester Pledge is a good (not new idea) but you can’t buy much from an empty shop.

After 20 years of being a City and District councillor and having been Mayor three times including through the pandemic,

I am standing down to concentrate on Second Chance Chichester to help those in crisis and desperate need. I would like to thank the people of Chichester for all their help and support through what has been a very difficult and unprecedented time of the pandemic and now a cost of living crisis. I have been proud to serve you.

There have been 20 years of missed opportunities including the A27, Southern Gateway, the state of the Harbour just a few from a long list. It really is time for a radical change of leadership at the District Council but the City Council is punching well above their weight for Chichester. accidents, and dangerous air pollution. The car has had its day. Councillors and MPS must look to a healthier sustainable future. To do otherwise is unforgivable.