To the editor: As a business owner in Bedford Town Centre I fully agree with your article about the dirty state of the town centre pavements. (Beds Bulletin, September)
This though is just one aspect of Bedford’s declining town centre.
Whilst I fully understand Bedford is not the only town suffering a decline, why has the current Mayor who has held sway now for 14 years proved so incapable of reversing the decline?
Any followers of social media will see visitors and residents comments about empty shops.
They will read about the filthy bus station where passengers have to run the gauntlet of drinkers and drug users, the begging by the payment machines at the car parks as well as rough sleepers beginning to frequent shop doorways again.
This sadly is what people REALLY think.
A walk around the town would enable the current Mayor see the dirt and filth lying in the empty stores doorways for himself. Why can’t Borough cleaners sweep them out every now and again?
Regarding the empty stores why can’t the Borough buy the empty sites of Beales and Debenhams itself?
In the Borough’s ownership it could either develop these sites on its own or in partnership with an innovative developer. This way as site owner it can set its own rent levels and choose what businesses it wishes to have there.
I have managed the family business in the town for over 50 and the town centre has never looked so bad with less and less people visiting.
Bedford needs a forward thinking visionary Mayor and Mayor Hodgson over the last 14 years has proved he is not up to the job.
Robert Rigby, Bedford
