I met Ryemarket manager Aaron Powell and we both vowed to work together on a series of initiatives to boost regeneration and retail in Stourbridge. We discussed the moves to make the town a Business Improvement District (BID) and to work on the Stourbridge Master Plan. Both of us have been calling for investment in the town to improve footfall. They also touched on the ongoing police operation to remove beggars from the High Street.
We are both on the same page when it comes to our desire to see investment into Stourbridge town centre and we will work together to make it happen. The council is due to start its consultation on the master plan later this year to gauge what local people want to see happen. But just as important is the BID and we both welcomed a feasibility study on this. Setting up a BID will give local businesses a strong voice over how we improve our shops and services and improve the area to attract more visitors.
We also welcome the positive and decisive action by the police and council to tackle begging in Stourbridge after we both raised concerns. We will be monitoring the situation over the coming weeks. Aaron thanked the police and council for its work tackling begging after problems worsened over the last few weeks. We both saw first-hand the stellar job the Homeless Prevention & Response Team does in responding to concerns and dealing with each case in a compassionate manner. It is still early days, but an improvement has been noticed already throughout the town and together continuing these efforts will hopefully instil confidence in everyone who uses Stourbridge's excellent shop and facilities.
