When I arrived here the big debate was the Tesco application to build on a site off the main street. As in all small towns the big shop wanting to more in is cast as the bully and even the AntiChrist! And when big powerful companies can use their might there can be a point.
However you can't have it both ways, if the high street will be killed off by the arrival of the supermarket you can't claim that the loss of longstanding shoe, flower and book shops in the town are caused by it when the big boys have not even broken ground. And suddenly Big Bad Tesco’s decision to delay their new store becomes another woe for the town, despite the fact that when planning was going through it would be a brave soul who suggested that having one of the big players could be good for the town, or even that it didn’t mean the end of the world.
The cause of our problems is a toxic mix of the economy and the convenience of online shopping. We are not on any useful bus routes that bring people to us, and if people drive out to work and other facilities they often do their shopping out of town too. Big towns are facing high street stress as well.
But it is easy to put the blame somewhere else, especially if it is an outsider. The reality is that the shops close because of hundreds of small decisions by everyone in the community. Each time I order a book online instead of through the independent local shop I have voted with my feet (or rather fingers on the keyboard). It is not the one big planning decision – but all those little ones that change the high street. We all have to accept our bit of responsibility – we can’t eat the cake of online bargains and still expect to browse the cakes on the high street.
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