United against recession

MEMBERS of the Ballymena business community have met to develop plans to counter the issue of empty shop units in the town.

The meeting, held in Café Couture on Tuesday, November 13, brought together town centre tradespeople and interested individuals united in their determination to come up with creative solutions to counter the recession.

The group heard from colleagues from the Church Street/Bridge Street area which is benefitting from a £150,000 DSD grant to improve the appearance of the street, and agreed to investigate future opportunities for other parts of the town to apply for this funding.

It is hoped that the successful week long Ballymena Pop-Up Festival, run in partnership with Ballymena Borough Council and local charity ROC as part of the public consultation on the town centre, will return in the new year.

Stephen McClelland, Ballymena based architect, and event organiser said: “One of the key areas for improvement in Ballymena town centre is rectifying the problem of the many empty retail units in the town – which are not only lost opportunities but also unsightly. We are determined to work together as a team to collectively address these issues with creative and positive ideas.”

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