Our once-thriving city centre is now a ‘ghost town’ full of empty shops… it’s a shadow of its former self
RESIDENTS of a once-thriving city say it has become a 'ghost town' full of empty shops.
Locals of , , say it is a shell of its former self and have slammed the council for 'killing off' the city centre.
They pointed to the ongoing pedestrianisation works in the area which they said has, coupled with the cost of living crisis, stifled demand from shoppers.
Gavin Thomas, who used to run Toni and Guy hairdressers before it closed down, said that councillors had ignored his pleas for support.
He explained that the roadworks had cut the branch's revenue in half, but he was still left without help.
Gavin told the : "I really don’t know what their mindset is.
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"They are spending money to make Victoria Street attractive and one of the most attractive businesses in that street they’ve let go of.
"You would think a city centre would want to have a business like Toni and Guy."
Meanwhile, Sham Sharma, chair of the Wolverhampton Business Forum, had to close down his Zuri Coffee shop as customers dried up.
He blasted the council, claiming that they "killed off" the city centre and had no interest in listening to local businesses.
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He fumed: "They have proved time and time again they are incapable when it comes to commercial activities.
"So many good businesses have been lost due to years of neglect and people no longer want to come here to shop.
"There’s more activity in a morgue than there is in Wolverhampton city centre"
Sham added that shops had been left unoccupied for "years on end" because of "prohibitive" rent and rates, saying that he was quoted £40,000 a year when he tried to rent one of the empty stores.
He further alleged that no council representative attended a recent meeting of over 100 concerned local traders.
He continued: "They really need to urgently start looking at ways to bring empty shops back into use.
"I would give landlords incentives to renovate empty shops and turn them into high quality apartments.
"You would create a customer base and that would give businesses a reason to start opening up. Once that happens you get others piggy-backing on and you start to have a proper city centre again that people want to come to."
There need to be a more dynamic approach"
Councillor Wendy Thompson
Councillor Wendy Thompson, leader of the opposition Conservative group on the council, recommended the introduction of free parking and improved public transport as methods of bringing footfall back to the city.
She said: "There needs to be a more dynamic approach."
However, Wolverhampton Council's deputy leader Stephen Simkins said that the council was taking a "blended approach" based around retail, events and attractions, would see the city centre "buzzing again".
He said: "Our recently updated Wolverhampton Investment Prospectus presents an ambitious plan and vision of how the city can grow.
"To deliver the transformation necessary after years of under-investment and the impact of the pandemic and a struggling economy, we need assurance of funding.
"Given that we are a Government Levelling Up priority city, it is therefore hugely disappointing that funding for our plans for investment in green growth and jobs was recently rejected.
"Overall, we understand the significant challenges businesses are facing across the UK.
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"These matters are beyond our control. But we regularly meet with city businesses and we are working closely with them to provide support where we can.
"We are always keen to hear the views of our businesses to help shape our plans, which we believe will get our city centre buzzing again."
