The newly elected councillors for Dwyrain ward in Bangor have vowed to fight for High Street and do everything they can to ensure the brighter future for the much-maligned city centre.
Independent councillors Nigel Pickavance and Dylan Fernley will be responsible for the new Bangor ‘super ward’ which includes Maesgeirchen, Hirael and the High Street.
In a joint statement on Facebook, the councillors set out their priorities to revive the longest high street in Wales, which has been in decline for over 20 years.
The councillors said: “We are all aware of the present state of Bangor High Street. Years of demise and shops closing. Little atmosphere and as a result little footfall, you can’t help but feel for the businesses that remain. One thing for sure the situation can’t get much worse.
“There has been a lot of suggested reasons for blame from business rates, recession, out of town supermarkets, cuts, online shopping and apathy from the local authorities.
“Are we any different to other Town and Cities? The answer to many is no, this is the pattern happening throughout the UK. That said, there are some areas which seem to be doing ok by being creative, investing in their City Centres and working hard to attract investment. This is where we need to get to and that can only happen if the City Council, Gwynedd Council, Businesses and local Community pull together.”
Business rates
One of the most important issues that’s raised on a regular basis are the business rates on the high street. The common misconception is the rates are set by the city Council and Gwynedd Council, however business rates are set by Westminster.
The councillors will request a meeting with Arfon MP Hywel Williams to discuss the situation even though the situation is unfortunately “out of their hands” – the councillors said: “These rates aren’t sustainable and we will also ask Sian Gwenllian in her capacity of our Assembly member to fight our corner and formally ask the Welsh Government to highlight the concerns nationally. We will pursue this no matter what the outcome might be.”
Empty shops
The councillors are determined to improve the appearance of the High Street, in particular the number of empty and poorly maintained shop premises. They said: “We see on a weekly basis shops closing with many going to Caernarfon Road. This is a very sad state of affairs, especially as so many are just left to rot and look ugly. We will look at what’s been done so far to improve their image, who’s responsible for reaching out to the owners and discuss with officers about potential funding to improve them.
“Why can’t the City Council take on some empty shops and with interested parties to run social enterprises. For example, Holyhead Town Council run a Cinema! Councils in other areas take on units, why don’t we? Why can’t we have a fun centre / kids zone in a big unit in the High Street? They have one in Pwllheli. It’s about making it happen. The High St doesn’t have to be just about retail. The fantastic new Escape Rooms is a perfect example, and we wish them well.”
Regeneration
The councillors have identified regeneration as an integral part of improving the High Street, they said: “This is huge for the City of Bangor and one we really need to prioritise and get stuck in with. Regeneration officers have always been available to Bangor but only for specific projects and covering the whole of Arfon, this isn’t great and hopefully will change.
“Already this week there is an advertisement via Gwynedd Council for the post of Regeneration Officer specific to Bangor. This officer will be vital to the City Centre and hopefully be responsible for applying and sourcing big funding grants to re generate the City Centre. We will be meeting with the head of this department to discuss the local economy and plans for the future.
“Wouldn’t it be great to have a citizen of Bangor doing this job for a change”
Planning
Both councillors raised concerns after recent investment and planning applications for the High Street were recommended for refusal by Gwynedd Council planning officers. Although councillors eventually approved the planning and a £2.2 million investment at the former Peacocks store, they said: “The high street receives a lot of planning applications. We cannot allow what happened with Peacocks to happen again. Gwynedd Officers recommending refusal when it was a perfectly acceptable application. Well done to Councillor Keith Jones for representing the developer. We will keep you well informed and take on all your views with regards to any new planning applications.”
Events and Projects
The councillors see events and projects as being crucial to reviving the city centre.
“This is a topic close to our hearts and hope we can make a difference with. We’ve noted the great work at the pier since the formation of the Friends of Bangor Garth Pier group and financial support from the City Council. This has proven to be a successful partnership and footfall has certainly increased on the pier.
“You might be shocked to hear this, but there has never been a budget for events and projects in the City Centre. This was one of the reasons I stood as Councillor in 2012.
“The People of Bangor Community Group, every one of us volunteers were smashing events and putting Bangor on the map again. The Carnival cost £8,000 to run and the Winter Wonderland £5,000. In return footfall was huge and retail shops did fab. Unfortunately as volunteers and the events grew bigger and better organising them and raising all the funds was unsustainable. We applied for funding and were offered just £100 towards both events. This was humiliating to the volunteers and a kick in the teeth for our Community. It’s so pleasing that our City Council is moving forward and have a shared vision and are supporting these new great events and projects.
“We feel there should be a set budget for the City Centre. This budget could be used to support any group wanting financial support to run an event in the centre, to stage weekly live music by the clock, to organise shop window decoration comps, let’s hear your ideas for increasing atmosphere and footfall. We will discuss this with the City Council at some point and hopefully common sense will prevail. It would be great if a small group could be formed to organise events in the City Centre.
“If you’ve ever been to a City Centre and no matter where you are, there is music coming from speakers. Chester, Liverpool, Llandudno pier, Ellsmere port, Aberystwyth are just a few examples of where I have seen this. It’s great for atmosphere and feel-good factor. Why can’t this be done on our High Street?”
Failure
The pair feel that despite numerous schemes to improve the city centre, the attempts have fallen short and failed the High Street.
They said: “Over recent years we have seen many groups formed such as Bangor imaging, Bangor Partnership and Bangor BID. There have been a number of officers of Gwynedd Council involved in the City Centre and a lot of money spent on consultations about improving the city centre.
“There hasn’t been enough input from what we believe to be the most valuable partners – Our local independent shops and even members of the community. We hope to be part of any future groups and will urge them all to consider including you the people who matter!”
Improvements
Determined to see improvements, the councillors have outlined their plans.
Pedestrianize or Part-Pedestrianize the City Centre
This is always one with equal for and against opinions. Some City Centres have done this to open the space for events, entertainment and opportunities for businesses and restaurants to put tables outside to give the area a good vibe. One for discussion.
Deep cleaning
We will look into the cleanliness of the street and challenge the Council to improve the visual image. This includes dog fouling which is an ever-increasing problem.
There is a new group set up by Gwynedd Council. This group of 5 workers will be responsible to cover all the little complaints we all make. From weeds, dog fouling, potholes, graffiti, dirty signage just to name a few. We will make sure they regularly visit the high street areas.
Bangor Market
Bringing back the Bangor Market has been great for Bangor and certainly increases footfall on Fridays.
We will support the market and hope it will keep growing to become the biggest in Gwynedd. Hopefully they will run more one-off artisan markets which is becoming more and more popular nationally. It was great to hear that any quirky/ craft businesses at both far ends of the street are invited to have a stall at the market.
One idea is to get the City Council to purchase a couple of market gazebos and working with the local Bangor Market, give young people wanting to start out in business a 6 month pitch using the gazebos.
Anti-social behaviour
We will hold regular meetings with the Police to discuss any issues.
Forgotten Businesses
It’s clear, the businesses at both ends of the street haven’t had fair play and many feel excluded when it comes the High St. They too pay rates and levy to BID (Bangor first) so any improvements should include these areas. I pay particular attention to the Christmas lights and coverage. Surely, it’s the right thing to do and cover more of the street if possible. We’ll certainly raise this with the City Council.
Our High St is the longest in Wales. I’ve spoken to many people including businesses, and they think this claim to fame needs highlighting and in reflection, made known as a selling point commercially and with tourism.
Big effort
The councillors concluded by saying: “We’ve covered quite a lot. We now need an uplifting effort by everyone with an interest. We are here and we need a structured plan for the future, ticking small and big boxes along the way. We hope to meet as many people as possible and would love to hear any ideas / suggestions you might have for improving Bangor High Street.
“As pointed out, we all hear negative comments about Bangor High Street. We also hear some positives and two particular positive comments stand out. One from a shop owner and the other from the manager one of the biggest companies in Bangor.
- Bangor City is a sleeping giant which just needs awaking.
- Bangor just needs people to take the bull by the horns and drive it forward.
“Can we turn this around? We can only try because continuing to do nothing is not an option! It’s all about partnership working and ticking boxes.”
