Maidstone Green Party wants a review of the town centre development following the opening of the new Fremlin’s Walk and the failed ‘Business Improvement District’ pilot. The council should not be asking for more money from the independent shops to improve the town centre and attract shoppers, the council should be making it easier for the independent shops to survive in increasingly hostile times and promoting the vibrant diversity found in good local economies.

We suggests that the town centre is becoming more and more bland through a takeover by large chain stores and bars at the expense of our local economy and heritage. We have the Carriage Museum threatened with closure and also the destruction of numerous old buildings to construct Fremlin Walk. We are also disgusted at the council allowing more and more ‘chain’ bars to open in the town’s centre, yet it seems unconcerned about  our more established pubs being run down or closed

We want Maidstone to start to investing in itself by forgetting the “BID” pilot and for the council to provide investment and improvements in our town. We feel that there is a now an opportunity as retailers move to Fremlin walk, to fill the vacant shops with locally owned, interesting businesses, but this will only happen with encouragement and support from the council.

A copy of the LIVE: Local, Independant, Vibrant Economy produced by the Green Party is available here.