Before…
Waverley Borough Council bought the site at 69 Godalming High Street.
Coming soon, Godalming will boast Loungers PLC, a bar-café serving brunch, tapas, burgers, and curry.
The Lounge serves late-night refreshments with outside seating between 11 pm and 12.30 am seven days a week. A Loungers spokesman said they hope to open early next year.
The Administration of Waverley Borough Council has frequently expressed its frustration with aspects of Godalming High Street. Together with Chambers of Commerce/Trade in the major towns, it is doing everything it can to help revitalise high streets.
Said Leader Paul Follows:
Councils have limited ability to have a say in what shops are on the high street. The willingness of some private landlords to put short-term profit ahead of the town (often leading to gaps on the high street) reduces local employment and the local economy generally because of those gaps (sometimes made permanent via central government planning policy that allows residential conversion). This has an overall impact on the attractiveness and ‘pull’ of the town.
You didn’t elect me to sit on the sidelines, and I believe positive intervention is needed. That is why Waverley BC acquired this site to;
- Strengthen our local economy and employment,
- protect our high streets from slow decline,
- act as a reasonable and sustainable landlord,
- foster a stable business tenancy that contributes to the town…whilst also providing a source of revenue to the council.
Central government cuts have forced councils to invest, often at a ridiculous scale and often outside of their boroughs. I am keen to invest in Waverley inwardly whenever possible, and I hope this will not be the last such intervention.
Follows folly, a disgraceful waste of council taxpayers’ money for which we will have to wait how many years before we see any real return on this ‘investment’. No wonder he is so unwilling to put up the figures and his ‘business plan’.
Not sure if this re-generation is about “return on investment” but a bold attempt at putting life back into Godalming High Street as well as providing a few dwellings for affordable rent.
The only potential downside is relying on eye wateringly expensive third parties to advise the Council.
Waverley should publish the ex M &co store cost of acquisition, money spent since then on advice and other matters to give a total for the “ investment “ and also let us know the forecast return from rent to the retail outlet and also to the home tenants. Then we could judge the wisdom of the investment taking into account the benefit of not having another empty shop in the high street. C’mon Waverley why not do this ?
When prudent landlords are jumping the high street ship why is Waverley BC jumping into a sinking ship? Who will be accountable for the losses, unlikely that either the councillors or their advisors will need to dip into their pockets. When interest rates are so high when will this expenditure be repaid and deliver a net positive return? More likely the council tax payers will be forced to pay for the losses from this preventable folly, however few seem to object.
The seven principles of public life require that “you should be prepared to submit to public scrutiny to ensure accountability,” if this doesn’t work the obligations under the freedom of Information Act 2000 are obligatory.
Exactly! I for one certainly object to this ill-judged, poorly researched and pointless waste of council tax payers money not to mention the smoke and mirror tactics employed to stop you from seeing the extent of this folly.
I’m confused. The planning application refers to 69 yet the headline refers to 89. Can anybody clarify please?
Sincere apologies – our mistake it is 69. Thanks for the comment. WW
Change of 89 to 69. Thanks for responding so quickly. Much appreciated.