Street on the road to ruin

Disgruntled: Paul Hughes says his customers are being hit hard in the wallet by high parking costs

THE owner of a major town centre shop has hit out at the council over sky high parking prices in Yorkshire Street.

Paul Hughes, the owner and manager of Zutti Co, let fly during the meeting of the town centre partnership, where traders outlined their priorities to council bosses.

He said: “Yorkshire Street car parking prices are absolutely scandalous. After this meeting I will be heading over to the Northern Quarter in Manchester. That’s an example of a beautifully regenerated area, with the trendiest bars and restaurants and really nice shops.

“And I will be paying 30 to 40 per cent less to park in one of the nicest areas of Manchester than I would have to pay park in Yorkshire Street or any other street in Oldham.”

Mr Hughes, who is also the chairman of the local Business Improvement District Committee, added: “We put this issue to the head of highways, Tony Noblet, a year ago and we are still waiting for a response.”

Mr Hughes told the Chronicle that motorists fork out 40p to park for just 15 minutes, 80p for half an hour and the price escalates from there.

He said: “Every single day customers come into my shop and complain about these charges. It really upsets them and the last thing you want is for people to feel as though they are coming into the town centre under sufferance rather than because they enjoy coming.”

And after a miserable year for traders, Mr Hughes also expressed concern about the state of decay all around the shops in Yorkshire Street, as traders catalogued their woes to a packed meeting.

He said: “My accountant comes over for meetings regularly and he parks at the Bradshaw Street car park. He puts his head in his hands because it’s such a disgusting mess and it’s the first thing he sees when he gets into Oldham.

“And then he looks across to the old town hall and he puts his head in his hands again and thinks ‘what a mess’. It’s hardly any wonder that he goes into Bury to do his own shopping.

“The old town hall has been a mess for years. So why don’t we clean it and get local school children to paint frescos on it in the meantime?”

Council leader Howard Sykes, said: “What is the priority for the traders? You want a reduction in car parking charges and lots of improvements but they’re not all going to get done.”

But Mr Hughes said: “Ten times more people will come and park their cars in Yorkshire Street if you slashed the prices.”

Other traders in Yorkshire Street raised concerns about the wider state of retail in the town, with David Clegg, from John Clegg Optician, slamming the lack of retail mix.

He said: “If you go to Leeds or Liverpool, you struggle to get a parking space, but in Oldham you can always find one and I think that says something.

“There is a better choice and quality of shops in these other areas. People are not shopping in Oldham in the numbers they should be for a population of 230,000.”






Are shoppers being ripped off?



Are Oldham motorists being stung when they park in Yorkshire Street? Is there a strong mix of shops in Oldham or are we lacking more specialist shops and major retail names? How can council bosses attract more people to the town centre? Send your views to jenniferhollamby@oldham-chronicle.co.uk