Council pledge to protect future of DIY store
STRATFORD District Council’s ruling cabinet this week pledged to do all in its power to help B&Q find another site in Stratford if its present building is demolished.
The DIY store – based at the Maybird Centre – has been in Stratford for 27 years and the company is keen to stay in the town.
But the landlord of the premises wants to pull it down and replace it by three smaller units. B&Q does not want a smaller store. It actually wants a bigger one.
At Monday’s meeting of the cabinet senior councillors – followed by representatives from the company itself – put in a plea for the council as a whole to support efforts to keep B&Q in the town because of its importance as a DIY outlet.
The cabinet was responding to a motion put to a full meeting of the council last month by Cllr Peter Barnes (Ind, Welford), seconded by Cllr Peter Moorse (Lib Dem, Hathaway), calling for urgent action to find an alternative site for the retailer.
Both Cllr Barnes and Cllr Moorse appealed to the cabinet on Monday to back their motion, and Cllr Moorse pointed out that one possible site was the 6.8 acres being sold by DCS in the canal quarter as a result of its move to Banbury.
Cllr Moorse said the council should look at the site, which could be used for affordable housing as well. “It would be a flying start for the regeneration zone,” he said.
Local resident Tom Baxter also urged the cabinet to support efforts to keep B&Q in Stratford. “This is about vision – what should be done for the communities,” he said.
Mr Baxter added: “Between 12 and 20 people could well lose their jobs at that store because of the decision made by the developer/landlord.” And Mr Baxter asked: “What is a community? It is about values. We’ve got to revitalise and hand on to the community a sense of well-being.
“We don’t want corporate people coming and trampling over the needs of the people of Stratford. We’ve heard [B&Q] will be replaced by fashion shops. We’ve already got fashion shops. Let’s back to essential values.”
Jane Sell, head of public relations at B&Q, also appealed for councillors to do all they could to keep the DIY store in Stratford. “We absolutely want to be here,” she said.
Cllr Chris Saint (Cons, Shipston North), the leader of the district council, said: “We welcome the commitment of B&Q and hope to work with them find a site. They may find a site independently of the council, and we would deal with any planning issues in an expeditious manner.”
It was decided that officials should work with B&Q to help the company find an alternative site and report back to the next meeting of the cabinet in a few weeks’ time.
After the debate Ms Sell told the Herald: “We absolutely want to stay here and want to invest and expand the operation. We want to provide more jobs at a time when we’re faced with potential job losses.”
Regarding her speech to the cabinet, Ms Sell said: “This was a plea to the council to help save B&Q. We would like to stay there as long as we can while in the process of trying to find another site.”
She said B&Q was currently in negotiations with the landlord of the Maybird Centre building to extend the lease on a temporary basis.
