New market hall welcomed despite parking fears

**New market hall welcomed despite parking fears**

Tim Sandy of French and Byrne cafe bar is enthusiastic about the proposals, but uneasy about what parking will be available for customers.

Businesses and shoppers in Stafford have welcomed plans to turn the former Guildhall Shopping Centre into a new market hall, though some have voiced worries about a shortage of town centre parking.

The redevelopment will transform the site into a venue for 28 independent businesses, including shops, food stalls, cafes and bars, as well as space for events and live performances.

The scheme has received £10m of government funding, secured after a campaign by Stafford MP Leigh Ingham.

"People want to see Stafford town centre doing well again. So do I. And this is a big step towards making that happen," she said.

But while traders said the town centre needed investment, some questioned whether enough had been done to make it easy for customers to get there.

Tim Sandy, owner of French & Byrne cafe bar, said he was excited by the plans but concerned about the loss of parking spaces.

"We're very close to where the new market will be and it's really exciting. Anything that happens for town centres now is really, really important," he said.

"My only concern is I've seen the plans and there's no parking being allocated at all, no town centre car park."

He said the town had already lost parking at the former Guildhall Centre and would also lose the car park on the former Wilko site as part of plans for a new college development.

"I do wonder where all this trade and all these customers are going to come from," he said.

"You can see the success of retail parks around Stafford and places like McArthurGlen at Cannock, but all of them have convenient and easy access for vehicles."

Despite those concerns, he said Stafford had the potential to thrive.

"Stafford is a terrific town and lots of us independents are ready to look after you," he added.

Gary Brightwell, who runs a jewellery shop on the high street, also said he was worried that a lack of parking could deter customers from coming into the town.

Gary Brightwell, co-owner of Hadleigh Jewellers on Gaolgate Street, also questioned whether enough parking would be available.

"We're knocking down buildings and we're redeveloping, but we aren't bringing new car parking areas," he said.

"What we need to get into town is proper car parking spaces first and foremost to get people wanting to come into the town."

Mr Brightwell said his business had traded in Stafford for 36 years but had seen footfall decline.

"Without those repeat customers coming back, then sadly we could possibly be a victim of the high street," he said.

"What all shops here are sadly missing is just general footfall."

Even so, he said the funding was good news for the county town.

"We are the county town and over the last five or six years I think it would be fair to say we've suffered a lot of losses of businesses and big retailers pulling out of the town.

"It is looking a little bit tired, so any investment has got to be positive news."

Dennis Dunn hopes the market hall will bring more variety to the town.

Residents also generally welcomed the plans.

Trish Hill said the redevelopment was better than leaving the site empty.

"It's got to be better than nothing, hasn't it?" she said.

"When you look at Stafford now, they've got to do something with it."

She said restoring a market to the town would appeal to many residents.

"A lot of older people do like markets and things like that, so anything like that would be good."

She added that Stafford's retail offer had changed greatly over the years because of online shopping and out-of-town retail developments.

"They need to rejuvenate in a different way, I suppose," she said.

Dennis Dunn also backed the plans, though he said success would depend on the mix of businesses attracted to the development.

"The town's dead, but the top end, it's all right," he said.

"I think if you've got plenty of variety for eating and things like that, then yeah, maybe."

"It'd be nice if there were some smaller traders as well."

John and Gloria Wilson have lived in Stafford for 30 years and are excited by the prospect of the new market.

John and Gloria Wilson said they were glad to see progress being made on the site.

"We could do with the market, couldn't we?" Gloria said.

"It just looks as though they've knocked it down and forgot about it."

John Wilson added: "Honestly, for a county town, it's disgusting.

"Why don't they get on it and start using it? [the £10 million] At least it shows some sign of improvement."

The former Guildhall shopping centre has been demolished in recent years.

Under the plans, the new market hall will offer space for 28 independent businesses and a business hub designed to help local firms start up and grow.

Ingham said Stafford had lost an important part of its identity when the market closed.

"We lost more than somewhere to shop, somewhere to go and something to do," she said.

"We lost a place where people met and where people had another reason to come into our town centre."

She said securing the funding would help Stafford become "a proud market town again", while drawing more visitors and businesses into the town centre.

The market hall funding was announced alongside plans for a new Mayoral Strategic Authority for Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire.

Labour MPs from across the area welcomed the proposal, saying it would give local leaders more control over investment, transport, skills and economic growth.

In a joint statement, they said: "This is an important step towards making sure our area has a stronger voice and can shape its own future."