Trying to tackle empty shops issue
WHY do we have empty shops on the High Street? The answer is more complex than you might think.
Firstly, the shops are mostly owned by private investors from elsewhere, for whom these empty premises are nothing more than a line in a spreadsheet.
Secondly, the Government doesn’t devolve enough powers to local areas to allow us to take effective action or lower business rates.
Next, there’s a more fundamental problem: nowadays people shop more online, meaning that the town centre shops which are still open have less money coming through the tills.
As a local area, our vacancy rates are lower than the national average and I’m told we compare fairly favourably with other places like Bath.
However, it can be annoying when we see empty premises and even more so when these investor landlords have let their premises fall into a state of disrepair.
That’s why I have a lot of sympathy with the Civic Society when they share their frustration at shops like the former Sports Direct building in the High Street.
They’re right that it’s a disgrace, but I fear that by directing their anger locally they’re aiming at the wrong people.
The organisation that should account for the state of the property is a company called Dorabelle Properties.
I’ve been in touch with them to ask that they do better.
More widely, we are pursuing a twopronged approach of enforcement and engagement.
We are taking enforcement action against more than 30 empty premises which have fallen into disrepair.
This will hopefully prompt action from the investors, but it can’t guarantee the shops will be filled.
We’ve also brought in an industry expert to help bridge the gap between the people of Cheltenham and the investor landlords.
In an ideal world, the Government would give local areas much more power to intervene to bring long-term empty shops back into use.
The ideology of the current Government won’t allow it.
Until this changes, we have an uphill battle – but local people can rest assured we are doing what we can.