Chichester 'task force' to help make city more attractive

During a meeting of the full council on Tuesday (September 27), a motion was tabled by Richard Plowman (Lib Dem, Chichester North).

Explaining that visitors and residents had described the city centre as looking ‘tired and shabby’, he said: “If you are expecting visitors then the first thing you do is to make sure the place is clean, neat and tidy.”

The motion suggested teaming up with partners such as the city and county councils and the Business Improvement District to deal with issues such as littering and graffiti as well as the enforcement of rules relating to cycling, pedlars and busking, shops repairs and the use of ‘intrusive’ shop signs and A-boards.

An amendment was accepted from Sarah Sharp (Green, Chichester South), which called for young people and families to be involved in enhancing what the city has to offer for a younger demographic.

She said: “City centres can no longer rely on shopping for footfall, and Chichester needs to have an offer which competes with other places with a range of choice in shops, fun activities and a welcoming and vibrant atmosphere.”

The city already has the Chichester Vision delivery group – a project which aims to attract inward investment and stimulate economic growth, with priorities such as reducing traffic, supporting independent businesses and creating a more diverse evening culture.

Martyn Bell (Ind, Chichester Central) pointed out that the task force would be a different beast.

He said: “This is not a future-facing task force – this is a task force that is going to get things done now that need to be done now.

“In my view, we should be focussing on the little things that we can fix.”

Leader Eileen Lintill said she was happy to support the motion and would ask officers to speak to the other councils and organisations to find out if they would be interested in joining the task force.

Without them, the project would come to a juddering halt.

She added: “Many things are not within the council’s remit so if we don’t have the other agencies on board then we’re not going to go anywhere.”