Business owners in Sutton say they are not convinced that new council powers to get landlords to rent out long-vacant high street shops will be successful.
A Government initiative has given local councils the power to take action against landlords that have not taken sufficient steps to rent out a high street property – by auctioning off leases on premises that have been vacant for more than a year.
Ashfield District Council formally adopted the new powers at a meeting on Monday (September 22).
Cllr Matt Relf (Ash Ind), executive lead for growth, regeneration and local planning said: “If there is a property that has been vacant for a long time, it will be put up on auction for a new tenant, and they can bid for however much they can afford.
“Then the [winning] tenant will move in regardless of if the landlord thinks it is too cheap or not, because retail is challenging at the moment.”
Under the new powers the vacant property has to have been unoccupied continuously for 12 months, or for at least 366 days (non-continuously) within a 24-month period.
Designated areas of the high streets – and some surrounding streets – in Hucknall, Sutton, Kirkby and Stanton Hill high street have been created for where these new powers can be used.
Recent data from the council shows Sutton town centre has a vacancy rate of 13.2 percent, while specific areas of the town have rates as high as 26 percent, including Low Street and the Idlewells Centre.
Similarly, Stanton Hill high street has an overall vacancy rate of 19.1 percent, which is significantly higher than the national average.
Businesses in Sutton said times were “tough” – but feared the new powers would do little to turn things around.
The manager of a store, who asked to remain anonymous, said: “It is good and welcome for them but existing businesses do not have a discount on rents.
“Low Street used to be nice. But since we opened six or seven shops have closed down and lots of them have been turned into classrooms for the college.”
Another business owner, who has been based in the town centre for more than 20 years, added: “Most of the shops are already rented out under contracts.
“This will get businesses in for a short time, but these landlords cannot make a loss forever.
“When I first came into Sutton you could walk down the high street on a Monday or a Saturday and it would be full.
“Long gone are those days.”
But Cllr Relf added: “This is only focused on vacant units, however I think it will give existing tenants powers to renegotiate – particularly if they can say to their landlords, ‘I’m going to move to a unit down the road that is up for auction’.
“It is about asking landlords to be realistic. It is challenging to engage with some landlords, because they may live abroad or have large portfolios, but to local people these shops are important.
“Unless the population as a whole makes a concerted effort to stop using online shopping, then we will never get back to the high streets people are nostalgic for, so let’s look for something new and diversify.”
Nottingham North and Kimberley MP Alex Norris, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Local Growth and Building Safety, added: “The government is determined to reverse this decline and bring our high streets back to life as part of our mission to drive growth, raise living standards and deliver an era of national renewal.
“High Street Rental Auctions will be an important weapon in their armoury. This will play a critical role in spurring regeneration, revival and renewal on a local level – and will be part of a package of measures we are deploying to put high streets and town centres back on their feet.”
• Council first in the UK to serve a High Street Rental Auction notice
