Northern Gateway Project to be reassessed

[Pete]

Lack of large food store blamed for the change in fortunes of the Northern Gateway Project.

From the DT website:

Councillor John Burrows, leader of Chesterfield Borough Council and executive member for regeneration, said: “Much has changed in a very short space of time in the retail sector but also on key nearby sites owned by other organisations or companies.

“The town centre is pivotal to the borough so we have decided that we need to pause and reflect on the implications of these many factors on the Northern Gateway scheme as originally envisaged.

“We need to consider if the scheme is able to work alongside desires to bring the former Co-op building back into use and to improve the occupancy rates at the Victoria Centre and in surrounding streets.

“Buildings like the Co-op are not in our ownership but we are working with landowners to get them back into use so that we attract more shoppers and leisure users to that part of town.”

http://bit.ly/1oLm5PM

[therealjr]

Chesterfield has always been good (if that's the right word) at moving its shoppers around.
First the Pavements killed Cavendish Street/Stephensons Place, then Vicar Lane hit the Pavements, the Northern Gateway would almost certainly have hammered Vicar Lane, whilst allowing Ravenside to develope affecting the whole Town Centre.
Big Supermarkets are suffering as customers turn to convenience outlets and online delivery. There's no longer any of the big 3 going to build a major new premise like the gateway required.

[Old Cruser]

This really pees me off - we are becoming a nation obsessed with large supermarkets and buying everything from one shop.

What I would like to see is more small market stall types of business.

What choice have we in Chesterfield for decent curtains including nets, bedding, music, toys, kitchen ware etc etc.
Sod the supermarkets - we have enough - bring back the individual outlets - without a flipping Costa!

[Pete]

What she said.

[Engine Driver]

Sorry, but thats never going to happen,  I can see a time coming when shops as we know them will disappear altogether in favour of online shopping. I know what you are going to say, but think back, it's not that long ago when there was no online shopping for groceries etc. But now every time you go out and you look in your rear view mirror there is a van full of goodies from Tescosons busting a gut to overtake. The thing is that folk today don't want to spend their valuable time off trailing round a supermarket shopping for groceries or other items, with perhaps the exception of luxury goods like a humungus great TV or the like, and even then they will have gone online to compare prices so they only have to go to the one shop.
This is only what happened a few years ago when the town centre died because of the arrival of the supermarkets, well now it's their turn due to the internet. In the future something will replace that as well and it will all move on again, but we'll still not get the little shops back!!!

[Old Cruser]

I don't bother with online shopping ( maybe on a couple of occasions but not food ) I like to see what I am buying for real not on a computer screen.

We are becoming a lonely and isolated world unfortunately.
One of my pleasures was to go off shopping for the day to Nottingham, Sheffield, Derby etc with a friend or my daughter, have a long lunch and a good old chin wag.

Shopping online or in a large supermarket just isn't the same is it.

I have to agree you are probably right though Engine Driver - but I am hoping you are wrong and as the saying goes
 'What goes around comes around'

[Engine Driver]

I hope I'm wrong as well but somehow I doubt it.
I don't know why but there just does not seem to the same amount of time available to go off shopping for the day these days.
As a child I can remember going off to Nottingham on the train for the day with my parents, having a meal in a cafe or in BHS etc, but now it's lets get there get what we want and race off home again.
Is it just the way of the world these days with everything needing to be done yesterday?