Sainsbury's Planning application Public Inquiry
Tuesday morning
Starts 10.00 a.m.
Community Centre
If you want more choice of food in Nairn then be there! If you want to see more jobs created in Nairn then be there!
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If you want the Town Centre destroyed and plenty out of work..........
ReplyDeleteIf you want more road congestion..........
I was up in Wick recently aand they have a lovely new shopping area near Hospital just at the edge of the Town....but the \town centre was DEAD..... and the shop keepers I spoke to all said roughly the same ... the shopping area is killing the Town.
Nairn Town Centre was destroyed years ago.As for "plenty out of work". I am sure they and a lot more will get jobs when Sainsburys come to town.Bring it on.
ReplyDeleteWick High Street enjoyed a degree of business much longer than other town centres due to geography. Prior to the building of the two out of town shopping centres the alternative was a five hour plus drive to Inverness and back (Much longer by bus or train).
ReplyDeleteMost Nairnites already choose to shop in nearby towns on a weekly basis; the new Sainsbury’s might affect business in Forres, Elgin, and Inverness but is not going to impact on our High Street in the same way as Wick.
"but is not going to impact on our High Street in the same way as Wick."
ReplyDeleteHow naiive
These supermarkets are developed for 1 reason only, Company Profit. They have no interest in Nairn other that how much money they can make from you.
Out of town retail parks destroy towns, not just in Wick, but all over the UK, and for everyone that talks about jewel that Nairn is, I am astonished to see how blinkered people are, to want destroy what little we have and ruin any chances of regenerating the town centre. And all for the sake of an oversized overpriced supermarket.
I guess what folk are saying is that if you live somewhere rural / remote and you have to travel to for of your shopping then you deserve to have your town destroyed by any supermarket giant that comes along and sets up somewhere out of town, that is not accessable to the majority and increases traffic congestion.
If people are really that unhappy with travelling for shopping they could always move closer to one.
The position of this application is not for the benefit of Nairn, and will not help our congested roads. If they positioned an appropriate size supermarket in / near the town centre, then you know they are serious about the town. Unfortunatly they will not do that because they are not bothered about Nairn / the town centre or its future as long as their checkouts keep filling with your hard earned cash.
One thing I am sure of, they will not take a single penny of mine across their counters.
I do not know why you are all desperate to see the demise of Nairn.
We have a chance as a community to say "Yes" but under our terms. Yes we want choice, yes we want jobs but we also want a viable town centre.
ReplyDeleteI think we should call time on the Sommerfield options for the land and buildings in the centre and pass them onto Sainsburys. Lets say to them we want you but you have to meet us half way.
Maybe we can be the first community to develop a viable business model for small towns and supermarket development.
Unfortunatly Sainsburys will not do that as it is not big enough and therefore not enough profit for them.
ReplyDeleteYou only have to watch the "I'm running Sainsburys" programmes to see how desperate they are for sales and profit.
Maybe we can be the first community to develop a viable business model for small towns and supermarket development.
ReplyDeletePossibly. Or maybe Nairn can continue the slow, but steady, path of decline it has been on for years. The A96 when it passes near the centre of Nairn is a disgrace - from the long-disused bus-station building on one side, to the derelict 'Regal', the derelict petrol station and the old Community Centre on the right. Prevarication by local councillors and stalling tactics by local business interests, aided and abetted by short-sighted residents, has resulted in Nairn High Street declining as an attractive place to shop with many premises having closed and being left unused long-term, or used for short-lived businesses for which presumably there is insufficient customer support. Businesses which thrive generally don't close.
Everybody requires food and most people, like it or not, have become accustomed to doing the bulk of their food shopping in supermarkets and those that do exist in Nairn are small and incapable of carrying the range of goods which most people want, even if they are satisfactory for less major food shopping needs. A large proportion of people in Nairn now do the bulk of their food shopping outwith Nairn, mainly in Inverness, Forres or Elgin. Provision of a larger supermarket in close proximity to Nairn, such as Sainsbury, will at least keep a much higher proportion of local people here to do the bulk of their food shopping and may attract people from outside Nairn to do some of their food shopping here too, as there is no other branch of Sainsbury closer than Aberdeen. Undoubtedly some of those shoppers, local and from outwith Nairn, would spend some money elsewhere in Nairn, including in locally-owned shops in the High Street. But if they ocntinue to be forced to travel 12-15 miles for their main food shopping that opportunity simply will not exist - and that is what has been happening for years, hence the High Street's slow decline.
Nobody forces people to go to Inverness, Forres or Elgin for food shopping and other shooping, but they do - and the traders in the High Street need to find a new way of enticing people to do some of their spending here; I think a locally-based larger supermarket can only help, provided local traders try to see the potential, rather than as usual throwing up barriers and stalling arguments.
I for one cannot wait to see a local branch of Sainsbury opening and I hope the Scottish Government approves it without delay.
“These supermarkets are developed for 1 reason only, Company Profit. They have no interest in Nairn other that how much money they can make from you”.
ReplyDeleteHow quaint (And Naïve)
The current shopkeepers in Nairn are there to make a profit from us by taking our money, their prime interest in Nairn is that they have a shop on the High Street which means they have a business to run (Admittedly there are a few charity shops)
I admire you Canute like determination to shop only in Nairn High Street but the nature of retail has changed greatly in recent years. Shopping has stopped being a necessity with the occasional treat.
Unfortunately consumers demand more than is now on offer on the typical High Street, which seems to necessitate a trip to a larger town or shopping via the Internet.
There is the chance that the Sainsbury’s store may help the High Street if enough Nairnites no longer feel the need to travel to other towns for their weekly shopping, the new Sainsbury’s plus our High Street shops being suffice.
With developments such as Sandown on the horizon I doubt that a town centre solution for a new supermarket would cope with the volume of customers, and we would then see people still traveling to nearby towns.
Like it or not a new age of retail is already here, it is too late to try and stem the tide. The majority of folk want a new supermarket and
we should try and negotiate with Sainsbury’s to get the best deal we can.
Sadly stores like Rose Brothers have long since gone and will not be returning to Nairn High Street Sainsbury’s or not!
At Last!Somone talking sense.Can only be good for Nairn.
ReplyDeleteIf the High Street Shopkeepers don't want us to have Sainsburys then they can go without my trade thank you very much.
ReplyDeleteI'll just go elsewhere, with or without Sainsbury's or just do more buying on-line.
'The current shopkeepers in Nairn are there to make a profit from us by taking our money, their prime interest in Nairn is that they have a shop on the High Street which means they have a business to run (Admittedly there are a few charity shops)'
ReplyDeleteYes well said. They want to make money out of us and think they can dictate to us what retail facilities we the simple consumers should be allowed to have.
Sainsbury's bring it on and four other retail units too. Perhaps a Homebase or a B&Q - brilliant!
Never mind streetscraping (Yes scraping!), Little Pinkie Centres, Sainsbury's etc, regenerate Nairn High Street and bring back Woolworths!!!
ReplyDeleteI can't tell you the number of times I've had to go to Inverness or Forres since its demise.
It was Woolworth's doors closing for the very last time that rang the death bell for Nairn shopping
Blank Cds are on sale in Nairn library for £1.50 each!
"I do not know why you are all desperate to see the demise of Nairn."
ReplyDeleteHow does my doing the weekly shop at Morrisons in Inverness help Nairn high street?
How does a retail development in Nairn, which encourages me to spend more of my money and time in Nairn, hurt Nairn?
- Brian
"How does my doing the weekly shop at Morrisons in Inverness help Nairn high street?
ReplyDeleteHow does a retail development in Nairn, which encourages me to spend more of my money and time in Nairn, hurt Nairn?"
Simple, stop going to Morrisons and shop at the coop or somerfilds in Nairn then
I find myself amazed that Nairn doesn't have a selection of shops second to none. I'm puzzled as to why the other townsfolk of the region aren't jealous of our retail outlets, and I just can't understand why our town isn't cited as an example of how first class, well managed retail can thrive in an age of globalisation.
ReplyDeleteThe reason for this dilemma?
Well I just don't seem to be able to resolve why, according to many comments, in this thread and others , Nairn High Street is in such a terrible state. Particularly when we appear to blessed with a wealth of experts telling us how should be done.
What's that you say? You've not ever been involved in retailing, and you, over there, you've never been self-employed. Really ! Well, in that case, you're just the person whose judgement I'd value in these circumstances.
I wouldn't dream of telling a banker, a dentist, a web designer or a traffic warden how to do their job but, strangely, the web seems to empower everyone else to tell those who are involved in retailing how to do theirs.
This sad little diodic communication system, leaves me feeling sorry for local retailers. They have all this knowledge on their doorstep but no way to tap into it.
Criticism of local businesses, agencies and groups, without actually having any 'real' knowledge of what has gone before, along with the sniping comments and sarcastic observations, are of no substance. Particularly those made from commentators who make no effort to get their backsides on the ground, attend meetings (on a regular basis) and make a difference - because (and it's quite big because) that's where things can really be changed. Not here, not in cyberspace.
Get yourselves out from behind your keyboard and get involved. Go to the ward forum; go to your Community Council meetings. Yes, I know you have no time. No one has any time.
You may have expertise that could be invaluable to a Community Council, a voluntary group or a local business in need of some help. In those circumstances, if you do help, you lift yourself out of the moraine. Please don't sit there and consider yourself an expert on everything - because I know, and more importantly, you know, that you aren't.
In any debate there will be those for and against. Please remember though that, in this situation such there will be some whose homes and livelihoods will be affected. While I defend free speech, I would like to see it tempered by some empathy for those so affected. Large scale development on your doorstep is unsettling for anyone, and those living close by have every right to be concerned & I would hope that the developers would do everything in their power to minimise the impact. Equally, there are shops in the High Street that will be affected, and those employed there have a right to be worried.
I don’t expect any constructive comments from some, who do seem to be rather entrenched in their philosophies but, given their evangelical outpourings on the subject, I do expect to see a tranche on new shop opening on the High Street soon, as they obviously have all the answers :)
Exactly my point - people are already using out-of-town retail developments to satisfy their shopping needs.
ReplyDeleteThe only difference being the retail developments are in Inverness or Forres, rather than Nairn.
In the meantime, Nairn Somerfield does not offer a wide enough range for the modern family, nor is it cost-effective.
- Brian
“Nairn Somerfield does not offer a wide enough range for the modern family”
ReplyDeleteAt last someone has identified the root problem for all the ills in Nairn, for it would seem that for those of us who HAVE to shop in Somerfields in Nairn are raising disadvantaged family groups due to the patently narrow range of goods which Somerfields offers.
I have now explained to my family that they should no longer regard themselves as ‘modern’, but living in a dark and distant age due to my lack of shopping options.
I’m hoping the Children’s Panel might look upon us favorably if I promise to take the bus to Inverness or Forres once in a while to try and bring 21st century items home to the clearly deprived bairns.
Aye,
J Tamson
Aye J Tamsan
ReplyDeleteKnow that feeling, was recently walking, dazzled by the choice, around the wonders of ASDA Elgin :-)
Ooh, a trip to Elgin and Asda
ReplyDeleteMa said that would be like a Christmas and a birthday rolled into one; I said I would be happy just to go to Asda
The Bairn
Could all these anonymous posters not give themselves an identifiable user name - it's impossible to follow the thread of this thread !
ReplyDeleteI can't even work out whether some of the garbled arguments are for or against the development, and the lack of a user name doesn't help !
Good point Nairnac, the anonymouses just have to click where it says Name/URL and a box will pop up where you can insert your nom-de-plume, this way you can have a name but remain anonymous.
ReplyDeleteYou can also go the whole way and sign up for a google account, that allows you to have your own blog if you have something to say that the Gurn won't publish - happens sometimes
:-)
No positive responses to my earlier post ? ( apart from a much appreciated complement from the Gurnmeister)
ReplyDeleteQED :)