Free Parking
I believe that giving shoppers two hours free parking in the town centre will encourage people to shop there. I have campaigned for this and now the Council is giving free parking after 3pm. I’m glad they’ve taken up my idea but they aren’t going far enough. All it will mean is that shoppers will come in the late afternoon, leaving the shops empty during the day and causing more congestion at rush hour.

Keep our town centre clean and pleasant
No one wants to shop in a dirty, drab, run down town centre. The Council should prioritise keeping the streets litter free, planting bulbs and encouraging local shops to put up hanging baskets this summer.

Attracting new customers to Rochdale
We should increase activities on our streets and in various venues. Performing arts, street entertainers, local community groups profiling some of the work they do – all this could add vibrancy to our town centre. Maybe we could invite special markets or fairs to come as one offs or more regularly to the town centre.

Managing empty shops better
Empty premises like the old Woolworths make our town look abandoned. We could use these properties better. We could use the windows for promotional posters for Rochdale or maps to other shops. Or we could display local artwork in these windows. If the landlords agreed, we could open up these shops on a temporary basis for community groups, charities or job clubs. We could even ask small groups of people, just starting a small business if they want to move in on a cheap business start-up rate.