FEATURE
Ambitious – Parker Barras director John Taylor has praised Stockton Council ’ s vision for the proposed multi-million pound development of the riverside waterfront .
turned theirs into a hospital and in London , a Debenhams store has now become a go-karting track .
“ Rather than just having the same big stores for shopping , which isn ’ t what ’ s required in the modern age , councils need to think differently – and both Middlesbrough and Stockton councils have stepped up .”
John says without such radical changes , our town centres would become even more unused or unloved , but the fact that councils are taking action now should mean the high street is much improved over the next decade .
He says : “ Stockton Council started before Covid , having new lighting installed and carrying out some landscaping , as well as redeveloping the Globe and purchasing a shopping centre to knock down and open up the waterfront .
“ In Stockton , the riverside is an asset of the town that had just been lost by shopping malls built in the 1970s .
“ The fact that Stockton Council is trying to integrate the river into what they are doing with the town centre is fantastic and it will be a destination that will attract tourists because it will be nice to visit .”
John also believes the future will see more people living in quality accommodation in our town centres .
He said : “ The relaxation of planning laws so that commercial premises can be converted into housing will also see a lot more people starting to live in the town centre , as well as smaller , specialist shopping venues moving in . “ I do think we will see the town centre thriving again and if people start living and working in the town centre , we will see a massive upturn in visitor numbers .”
Despite his optimism , John is also realistic and believes that positive change is “ not going to happen overnight ”.
But given that Parker Barras is seeing increasing demand to rent and to buy commercial property , he is adamant the long-term future is a bright one – at least for Middlesbrough and Stockton . He said : “ I still think there ’ s quite a bit more pain to come at the moment – there are still restrictions on collecting rent arrears , which don ’ t get lifted until next year . But with the plans the local councils have in place , the future of the high street on Teesside is bright .
“ Newport Road has a new art college and there is a focus on bringing more people to the town centre and that will be a continuing trend .
“ One of the issues we ’ ve got at the moment is we haven ’ t got enough stock – people are wanting to rent and to buy and there are not enough properties on the market to fill demand , so there ’ s still a real appetite to occupy space .”
Speaking of the affordability of rents – and even the prospect of smaller businesses buying up properties in the town centre – John explains that his company recently oversaw the sale of one commercial property for a snip at £ 88,000 . In 2004 , that same building sold for £ 615,000 .
“ For a town centre property , this is extremely good value for money and you can get a really good return on your investment ,” said John . “ We also secured a tenant for the property , so the landlord is happy .
“ The market is becoming extremely attractive when buying properties – there are currently millions of pounds being knocked off the prices of commercial properties across the UK .”
At the same time , John believes the customer will be king of the new look high street .
“ Retailers who remain on the high street will start upping their game in terms of their customer service ,” said John .
“ Despite advancements in technology and internet shopping , some people still like the interaction of being able to go into a shop and get expert advice .
“ I definitely think we can look forward to a bright future for our town centres on Teesside .”
The voice of business in the Tees region | 71