Can we save the UK and Ireland’s high streets with multi-use spaces?
I am keen that we learn from other settings this week, Ireland is a bit closer than the USA but this re-use plan for a challenged modest town high street is worth thinking about and potentially copying. This story tells us:
Could a multi-use space be what it takes to transform our struggling high streets?
According to statistics from the Northern Ireland Retail Consortium and Springboard, footfall on NI’s high streets was down by 5.5% last month, making it the worst region in the UK.
Some people in Bangor, County Down, think they may have found the answer.
The seaside town’s main shopping centre, the Flagship Centre, closed its doors earlier this year.
The premises is privately owned and is now in administration.
Louise Little, manager of North Down Community Network, believes a multi-use facility where community, voluntary, health, business, statutory and faith-based sectors can operate under the same roof could regenerate the community and create major footfall.
The director of the Northern Ireland Retail Consortium said the group is “thinking in a way that a lot of town centres need to”.
“We need to be having these conversations now because this seismic change is already underway,” Aodhán Connolly told BBC News NI.