A long wish-list of things that would make Marlborough a better place to live and work was drawn up by town leaders last week, in preparation for the drafting of a Neighbourhood Plan.
Welcoming representatives of groups as diverse as the town council, the Chamber of Commerce, Marlborough Area Development Trust, and Transition Marlborough to the Town Hall, Councillor Guy Loosmore explained “tonight is about ideas, thoughts and things that matter to you, both cultural and economic.”
The dozen representatives set to work blue sky thinking under a range of topics: transport and parking; business; telecommunications; land redevelopment; leisure; streetscape; cultural; tourism; energy.
Almost a hundred big ideas made it to the long-list, before being whittled down to a shortlist of around 30.
Among the hot topics was the need for cheaper and more available parking – for residents, workers and visitors – combined with better public transport links. The implementation of a CCTV system was also widely supported.
Investment in tourist information was identified as an urgent priority, while changes to Marlborough’s historic high street could see the changes to parking allocation, the widening of pavements, and perhaps even some kind of artistic feature between the lanes, all in a bid to better manage traffic flows.
The purpose of a Town Plan is to inform planning policy, something over which the town will have greater control in the light of the Localism Act.
The Plan – a project which is being spearheaded by the Chamber of Commerce – could take up to two years to develop.
Once adopted, the Chamber is proposing a second scheme – the formation of a Business Improvement District – to pay for improvements.
The BID would see two or three percent added to all business rates in the town to generate hundreds of thousands of pounds a year.
It is generally regarded as a way to encourage – or force – national firms to financially support local improvement plans.
The next meeting of the group will be held in September, when ways of engaging the general public will be high on the list of priorities.