l to r: Joe Roberts, Roberts Limbrick,Tracey Crews from Cheltenham Borough Council, David Jones from Evans Jones, Belinda Hunt from Cheltenham BID and Jeremy Williamson from Cheltenham Borough Council.
The rebirth of our high streets is already upon us
To sit in front of Joe Roberts’ presentation on the future of the high street is to be taken on an emotional roller coaster – to a future that is already here. It reminds us how we remember our once beloved town and city centres were – havens of hustle, bustle and ringing tills – and he does not shy away from what many have become. Yes, we have voted on our phones and computers for the cheaper online offer, delivered to our door, in what now looks like the biggest collective act of retail self-harm ever been seen. But, as Mr Roberts, a director of Gloucester architects Roberts Limbrick pointed out at a recent Cheltenham Property Forum at the town’s John Lewis department store, before we tip headlong into mourning what
once was, something else is happening too. Something positive. “Headlines regularly tell us that the centres of our towns and cities are dying. “Empty buildings are turning our towns into something from the zombie apocalypse. “But there is cause for optimism. “The retail sector is hitting back, slowly, with innovation. Some are moving out of physical retail others are moving in (Amazon, eBay). “We are seeing other uses start to emerge (or re-emerge) on the high street, as retail spatial requirements change and space becomes available.” It is reinventing this space where his profession sees real potential and believes there is great opportunity
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