Changes At Beccles Harbour

[Poppy]

3 hours ago, JennyMorgan said:

If I have to pay to park then I rarely go there, plain & simple. Judging by the decline of our local high street (Lowestoft) and the growth of nearby shopping centres, with free car parking, I am not alone. Beccles has long had oodles of free parking, we shop there far more than we do in my local town. 

We've just got back from a week in Kent. Thanet must have some of the most expensive parking in Great Britain, outside of London, that is. £4 for an hour's parking in Ramsgate and £3 in Margate near the Turner contemporary. Admittedly entrance there is free .

We took our money and spent it elsewhere. Why local authorities don't understand this I'll never know. Then again, perhaps they do, but don't give a **** to the effect on local business !

[MauriceMynah]

If these "Pay car parks" continue to be ful or near full, then the councils have pitched it about right. If they become empty then they got it wrong. Without those figures then it's hard to justify or condemn those charges.

How it will effect the retail outlets may, but only may be relevant. It is something that changes from area to area.

[Hylander]

55 minutes ago, SPEEDTRIPLE said:

Personally, i think Beccles has deteriorated over a few years.  There used to be lots of nice shops, but like all towns where the big superstores open up nearby, the village centre has gone downhill. I can remember when we used to go up to the town for food shopping, and other things. Now, there tends to be charity shops, cheap shops etc etc. It happens everywhere.

Oh dear I feel I have to defend dear little Beccles.   As a Market Town I think it is one of the best.       I think I know of 2 charity shops.     In fact when I had a lot of clothes to give to charity I could not find a charity shop in Beccles.      If you went to Sittingbourne in Kent you would be hard pressed to find any actual retail.    It is all charity shops or empty shops  - gross.    In Beccles we have lots of little shops tucked away here there and everywhere.    

 

 

[Poppy]

24 minutes ago, Hylander said:

      If you went to Sittingbourne in Kent you would be hard pressed to find any actual retail.    It is all charity shops or empty shops  - gross.    In Beccles we have lots of little shops tucked away here there and everywhere.    

 

 

I'm unfamiliar with Sittingbourne. What do the local council demand of shoppers for parking ?

[Guest]

8 minutes ago, Hylander said:

Oh dear I feel I have to defend dear little Beccles.   As a Market Town I think it is one of the best.       I think I know of 2 charity shops.     In fact when I had a lot of clothes to give to charity I could not find a charity shop in Beccles.      If you went to Sittingbourne in Kent you would be hard pressed to find any actual retail.    It is all charity shops or empty shops  - gross.    In Beccles we have lots of little shops tucked away here there and everywhere.    

 

 

It's an unfortunate fact, that when the 'big boys' (Tesco, Morrisons etc.) move in, a few of the older independent shops will always disappear. But, I think compared to many other 'market towns' Beccles has fared quite well, it has still managed to keep it's character. I still enjoy visiting Beccles and think it has kept the friendly atmosphere, it always had.

As has been said, it's happening everywhere, town councils can't stop the 'big boys' moving in, they're very powerful and will usually get their way. Besides, almost everyone wants the convenience of a big supermarket on their doorstep, so we're all to blame for the demise of so many of our Market town & village shops.

[grendel]

1 hour ago, Poppy said:

I'm unfamiliar with Sittingbourne. What do the local council demand of shoppers for parking ?

£2 for 2 hours generally.

[MauriceMynah]

35 minutes ago, kingfisher666 said:

town councils can't stop the 'big boys' moving in, they're very powerful and will usually get their way.

A little story, make of this what you will.

I worked for one of the major supermarkets some years ago. It was noticeable that in the stockroom, areas that were meant to be kept clear as routes to fire escapes were routinely full of stock. I said nothing as I was just a contract worker and needed the job.

I transferred to a larger branch of the same company and found the same thing. I still said nothing. One day all the offending stock was moved away from these areas and the escape routes were cleared. By amazing coincidence, the following day we were subjected to a spot  fire inspection. The independent fire inspectors were more than satisfied with what they saw, and all boxes were ticked.

By the end of my shift the next day, it was back to normal with all fire routes blocked of severely narrowed.

I have no reason to suspect that this branch was unique in this, given that the first branch was under a different council, and in a different county. further I see no reason why this company would have this advantage over other supermarkets, who I suspect flout the law in the same manner.

So, where does this "corruption" if that's what it is,come from? 

I repeat my quote from Kingfisher666

53 minutes ago, kingfisher666 said:

town councils can't stop the 'big boys' moving in, they're very powerful and will usually get their way.

 

[dnks34]

Where i used to live in East Yorkshire they didnt stop Tesco moving in but they did make them build the entire supermarket from brick instead of one of the usual metal composite clones they put up everywhere they can.

[ExSurveyor]

I paid 6 pound for 4 hours in Cromer,  and that was in a field,  20 minutes walk to the pier.  I think the Norfolk hot spots have got the edge over local council car parks.

[smellyloo]

1 minute ago, psychicsurveyor said:

I paid 6 pound for 4 hours in Cromer,  and that was in a field,  20 minutes walk to the pier.  I think the Norfolk hot spots have got the edge over local council car parks.

Yep .... Cromer parking charges are outrageous. Makes popping in for a couple of hours far too expensive.

On the plus side ..... there are always plenty of parking spaces.

[ExSurveyor]

The fish and chips were outstanding though.

[YnysMon]

At least in Beccles the Tesco is near the centre, so it’s easy to visit other shops too. Far better than an edge of town development in my opinion.  It may even bring in extra custom to nearby stores. If there wasn’t a Supermarket in Beccles I wouldn’t be surprised if lots of people would go to Lowestoft or wherever has the nearest supermarket. The sad reality if that I can’t see a working Mum or Dad doing all or most of their shopping in small local shops nowadays, even though I’m all for preserving town centres.  I love Beccles, it’s got character, a lovely range of shops and seems a very friendly place. 

Helen

[JennyMorgan]

2 hours ago, Hylander said:

Oh dear I feel I have to defend dear little Beccles.   As a Market Town I think it is one of the best.       I think I know of 2 charity shops.     In fact when I had a lot of clothes to give to charity I could not find a charity shop in Beccles.      If you went to Sittingbourne in Kent you would be hard pressed to find any actual retail.    It is all charity shops or empty shops  - gross.    In Beccles we have lots of little shops tucked away here there and everywhere.    

 

 

I can think of at least seven, if not eight charity shops in Beccles! Not that I am regular Tesco customer, Lidl more my style, Tesco's car park at Beccles has really reactivated Beccles town centre.

[JennyMorgan]

Lowestoft (Waveney District Council) has just had one of its two multi-story, town centre car parks demolished! Apparently, amongst various reasons, it was under-used and lost money.

[ChrisB]

1 hour ago, psychicsurveyor said:

I paid 6 pound for 4 hours in Cromer,  and that was in a field,  20 minutes walk to the pier.  I think the Norfolk hot spots have got the edge over local council car parks.

 

1 hour ago, smellyloo said:

Yep .... Cromer parking charges are outrageous. Makes popping in for a couple of hours far too expensive.

On the plus side ..... there are always plenty of parking spaces.

I pay £56 per annum for a short term parking ticket, covers two vehicles letting me stay for 3 hours in any of NNDC car parks from Wells all the way round to Sea Palling. I parking in them nearly every day so quids in. Long term parking is £204.

[SPEEDTRIPLE]

3 hours ago, Hylander said:

Oh dear I feel I have to defend dear little Beccles.   As a Market Town I think it is one of the best.       I think I know of 2 charity shops.     In fact when I had a lot of clothes to give to charity I could not find a charity shop in Beccles.      If you went to Sittingbourne in Kent you would be hard pressed to find any actual retail.    It is all charity shops or empty shops  - gross.    In Beccles we have lots of little shops tucked away here there and everywhere.    

 

 

Hi Monica (or have got you muddled up with someone else again)

Please don`t get me wrong, i still love Beccles, it`s got great riverside views etc, and is a lovely town. But i think in reality, it`s not as nice as it used to be.  It DOES however have some lovely tea shops etc, as me being allergic to alcahol, we frequent them all the time, and only do pubs if we want to eat.

[JennyMorgan]

1 minute ago, SPEEDTRIPLE said:

Hi Monica (or have got you muddled up with someone else again)

Please don`t get me wrong, i still love Beccles, it`s got great riverside views etc, and is a lovely town. But i think in reality, it`s not as nice as it used to be.  It DOES however have some lovely tea shops etc, as me being allergic to alcahol, we frequent them all the time, and only do pubs if we want to eat.

The Waveney House Hotel, riverside upstream of the Yacht Station, does an extremely acceptable tea & cakes/cream tea.

[SPEEDTRIPLE]

Just now, JennyMorgan said:

The Waveney House Hotel, riverside upstream of the Yacht Station, does an extremely acceptable tea & cakes/cream tea.

Thanks for that Peter, we`ll give them a try, possibly in November when we`re back aboard Lightning.

[Hylander]

17 hours ago, Poppy said:

I'm unfamiliar with Sittingbourne. What do the local council demand of shoppers for parking ?

From what I gather most folk shop at the large supermarkets , of which there are many, from Lidl to Morrisons, Tescos, Sainsburys Asda you name it is there and all have free parking.

[Hylander]

14 hours ago, JennyMorgan said:

I can think of at least seven, if not eight charity shops in Beccles! Not that I am regular Tesco customer, Lidl more my style, Tesco's car park at Beccles has really reactivated Beccles town centre.

7 , Peter where are they,   that knowledge will be useful.     I seem to recall,  at one there was Cats Protection (that went) and the A charity shop.

[MauriceMynah]

There are some, no idea how many, but the town isn't flooded with them in the way some other towns are.. When a big supermarket starts to impact a town centre to the point of ruining it, an excessive number of charity shops is accompanied by an equally excessive number of Estate Agents, Take-away restaurants and fast food outlets.

A few "specialist" shops will remain Boutiques, Jewellers and Car spares, along with the chain news agents, betting shops and chemists, but the heart of the town is ripped out. The Butchers, the Bakers  (no candlestick makers) and other food suppliers are priced out of business. Foot fall is reduced so the town centre pubs start failing.

It's a vicious circle. The lower the footfall, the more shops fail. The more shops fail, the better the supermarkets customer share. the better their share the lower the town centre foot fall, and then more shops fail.

I hope Beccles can survive this. So far it's looking good, but the council will need to help by supplying affordable parking and affordable rates for the town centre shops.

[Hylander]

You cannot beat Seppings The Butchers, you have to queue to get in the front door sometimes.    Always buzzing and busy.   Proper butchers.    Lady takes the money in a little room as you go out of the door.    Just like the old days.

Lovely kitchen shop with a coffee shop behind that is just through the alley way to Tescos.     

[vanessan]

Where is Seppings Hylander?

[smellyloo]

16 minutes ago, vanessan said:

Where is Seppings Hylander?

website:- https://www.wjseppings.co.uk

[JennyMorgan]

2 hours ago, Hylander said:

7 , Peter where are they,   that knowledge will be useful.     I seem to recall,  at one there was Cats Protection (that went) and the A charity shop.

I just knew that you'd ask me that ! Two are in the street that runs up from the yacht station & past the church, near Coopers, one is in the market place, one is opposite the always superb Twyfords Tea Room, carry on till you come to a fork and veer right for two more or left for one more. Come up from the yacht station and go hard left at Beales Department Store and first turn right, two more plus a very fine chippy!