Roll up your shutters and show off your shops!

NO welcome to Oldham: shuttered shops give Oldham negative image, says councillor

BUSINESSES are being challenged to make sure Yorkshire Street does not put off Metrolink visitors to Oldham.

It will be the main route to the town centre for pedestrians when the Metrolink station opens at Mumps later this year.

And Councillor Dave Hibbert is worried about the impression created by closed takeaway shutters and rundown shop fronts.

The cabinet member for regeneration issued the challenge at this week’s Town Centre Partnership meeting and later said: “It is somewhat dispiriting. There are too many businesses that are shuttered up and not in operation.

“The last thing we want is people coming up Yorkshire Street, getting a negative image and thinking ‘we are not coming back’.

“We have instructed officers to look at every way they can think of to improve the environment, and we have asked them to speak to businesses to see how the council and traders can work together.

“We are confident that when the Metrolink is running there will be a huge increase in footfall. It’s a massive opportunity for businesses to take advantage of but the council can’t do it all.”

The town centre and Yorkshire Street has been a Business Improvement District for five years, with businesses paying additional rates to provide everything from tree planting and crime prevention initiatives.

The scheme has finished and is being evaluated before deciding whether there is support for another.





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