With recent news coverage of plans to consult experts on how best to improve the market place, residents have been writing to Ringwood & Fordingbridge News to have their say.
One respondent, Catherine Thomas, took the time to say “the council’s plans sound exciting and opening up space for outdoor dining will give a positive vibe to an area that has been underused for many years”, while Kim Hiett wrote “I think this is a fantastic idea- and am so pleased to hear it is being considered.” Kim went on to share their views, stating that “Ringwood is a wonderful town with lovely people and is surrounded by areas of beauty, but we need a vibrant High Street that can survive these trying times … more and more homes are being built in and around the area, with this comes the need for busy and popular High Streets. Let’s all get behind this idea and keep our High Street great!”.
John Morton has called for more public engagement in the development of the Market Place, asking “what makes the working party think ‘experts’ know better than local people on how the Market Place should look?”. Don’t worry John, the Neighbourhood Plan has been busy consulting with shoppers and shopkeepers in the town and will be putting our proposals out to the public in various ways as they progress.
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