Tag: retail

Despite the current problems, Ludlow can be the new future of shopping for pleasure

Despite the current problems, Ludlow can be the new future of shopping for pleasure

We have empty shops in town and we will probably have more. Other than convenience stores, supermarkets and a limited outdoor market, no one is trading through their high street stores at the moment. Reopening is probably more than a month away.   Our town centre has been weakened by the pandemic. It is far from dead. Behind the shuttered and darkened shopfronts are businesses working hard online. Or resting. It’s hard to cut hair or trim nails on the internet. We must stride into the future. Not just post-pandemic. Over the coming decades. We must not turn our back on our high street and the traders that give it colour and life. If we give up on our town centre, we will ensure its obsolescence. There are currently around seven or eight retail premises in Ludlow town centre that are empty or up for let. One of the most recent advertisement to let is Joules on the Bullring. It has always been a trophy shop, attracting the attention of passers-by and festival goers who might drop in and buy a bargain but were just as likely to buy the products online later. High streets have always been changing but…

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Ludlow pub fined for breaching lockdown restrictions – I am not allowed to tell you which pub

A fixed penalty notice has been issued against one of the smaller pub type venues in Ludlow town centre. There has been a stream of complaints about this venue using dodges to get around the social distancing and subsequent lockdown rules. The legals at Shropshire Council say the business cannot be named and I cannot comment. The council’s press release and my legal advice are below. But it is not one of my locals. The locals I so miss. It is not one of our historic or anchor venues. I must say no more.

Harp Lane Deli applies for awning – its plans for tables and a gazebo need more discussion

Harp Lane Deli applies for awning – its plans for tables and a gazebo need more discussion

One of Ludlow’s favourite delis has applied for Listed Building Consent for an awning to cover the seated area (20/05073/LBC).  Harp Lane Deli at 4 Church Street has also applied for five tables with chairs and a gazebo. The proposal is in part a response to Covid-19 restrictions. The restriction to two customers in the store at a time has damaged profitability. This is an application that is right in principle but needs further discussion on the details.

Planners to ask councillors to approve Rocks Green Sainsbury’s supermarket and petrol station next week

Planners to ask councillors to approve Rocks Green Sainsbury’s supermarket and petrol station next week

It’s expected to be the final decision. After more than six years of wrangling and discussion, plans for a Sainsbury’s supermarket are expected to be approved by the Southern Planning Committee on 22 September. There are still some details to be resolved but there are no fundamental planning reasons for rejecting the scheme. But to me the scheme is not as good as it might be. Bus passengers are treated as second class customers by the developers and planning officers alike. What they long for is cars, cars, cars. This application pays no more than lip service to the climate emergency. A handful of EV charging points. A lower profile to reduce space heating. The application will also urbanise the Rocks Green roundabout and will be a poor gateway for one of the country’s most historic towns.   But this development will go ahead and, love it or hate it, and we will have to live with it for decades to come.

Rocks Green Sainsbury’s supermarket runs into objections from highways agency on drainage and screening from A49

Rocks Green Sainsbury’s supermarket runs into objections from highways agency on drainage and screening from A49

Highways England has issued another holding recommendation on granting planning permission for the proposed Sainsbury’s store off the A49 at Rocks Green, Ludlow. The objections from the government highways agency are not major, except for its concern that a barrier proposed is not strong enough to prevent vehicles crashing out of the proposed car park onto the A49. These objections will mean that Blackfriars Property Group will have its work cut out to begin work before the winter as it had hoped. The earliest the application can be considered by the Southern Planning Committee is 22 September. It might not be ready for that meeting if Highways England’s concerns cannot be satisfied. The opening of Sainsbury’s, Argos and a petrol filling station is expected before Christmas 2021. That could be delayed if the committee decision is made after September.

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