We need a national program to subsidise the conversion of empty high street shops into community green spaces and urban gardens. This isn't just about looking pretty, it's about tackling a few real problems at once. Our town centres are dying, filled with empty units. At the same time, we're seeing less green space in urban areas, which is bad for air quality and people's mental health, especially our kids who don't have much room to run around.
Imagine walking down Thornton Road and seeing not just boarded-up shops, but small, vibrant pockets of green. Local councils could partner with community groups, like my youth centre, to manage these spaces. They could grow vegetables for local food banks, provide safe places for young people to hang out after school, and even host small markets for local crafters. It’s about making our high streets useful again, not just for shopping, but for living.
Discussion (6)
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Mock the policy. Not the person. Community principles →
We've got empty shops all over Sunderland, and I can tell you, the council's struggling to even fix the potholes. This sounds like another policy that sounds good on paper but won't actually happen for us up North.
Who is going to budget for the upkeep, the watering, the pest control? It sounds like a recipe for creating more neglected spaces, just green ones this time. We'd be better off offering incentives for businesses to take on those empty units, perhaps through targeted tax breaks, to stimulate actual economic activity rather than creating a new drain on public finances.
We've got empty shops all over Sunderland, and I can tell you, the council's struggling to even fix the potholes. This sounds like another policy that sounds good on paper but won't actually happen for us up North.