By Kieron Day – third year journalism student at Liverpool John Moores University and Broadstairs resident.
A period of free parking or lower rates would help bring customers to Broadstairs High Street, say traders.
With trade still low following the pandemic and then a cost of living crisis, businesses say lowered or some free parking could revitalise the town.
Parking at spots close to the town, such as the harbour and Albion Street is £2.80ph during the peak Summer season, reduced to £1.10ph from November to March.
Further out at car parks including Vere Road the charge is £1.50ph. On Saturdays parking is free at St Peters Park Road Car Park.
A number of on-street parking places were lost in 2020 when double yellow lines were introduced in roads including Carlton Avenue and Pierremont Avenue. In the same year a trial scheme for 30 minutes free parking in Birchington’s main shopping area was introduced.
Traders say the lack of time-limited free parking means customers may decide to travel to Westwood Cross where there is free parking for shoppers for at least 1.5 hours and includes accessible spaces for those that require them.
Among those backing the idea for free parking is J Prentis Fruiterers & Greengrocers which has a shop at the lower end of Broadstairs High Street.
Kerry Prentis, who works between the different shop locations for the company, said: “Half an hour free parking would help a lot because people could run to the bank, run to Tesco’s, run in here and then go, and that would be good.
“Customers do [complain] because there’s never any places to park and the car park is too expensive. It is a congested town but they could do with lowering the rates of the car parks and then it would encourage them to come into town more instead going to a supermarket or Westwood Cross because it’s a competition for us all of the time.”
Staff at Broadstairs Herbal Apothecary on Harbour Street say a lack of free parking also reduces accessibility: “We’ve got old customers that say it used to be a lot easier but now it’s a lot more complicated, they’re not very happy.”
Recently opened arts and homeware store Coastal Creatives is also based at the lower end of the town. Owner Robert Quade said: “(People) should be shopping locally, I understand it because (Westwood Cross) provides free parking and parking right next to the shops whereas here you have to park a long way away and it’s expensive.”
The Little Art Gallery, in Eldon Place, has also experienced problems, partly prompting the decision to close at the end of this month after 20 years trading in the town.
The shop has been run by Vicki Griggs and a fellow artist since 2004 but a combination of challenges, including a drop in footfall, the lack of free parking and continuous road closures, have forced the difficult decision to close.
Vicki will keep the online shop and continue teaching, exhibitions and her popular paint and Prosecco parties but says it has become unviable to keep the property open.
Mum-of-two Vicki said: “It was a hard decision to make. I’m absolutely gutted because I put my heart and soul into it but we had to make the decision.
“Footfall has dropped off massively since covid and another thing affecting lots of shops is the constant road closures without adequate signage to say businesses are still open. There is also no free parking so if people have to pay a fortune to park that is going to mean a drop in footfall too.”
The issue is less evident for businesses at the top end of the High Street where there are more off-road spaces nearby.
Plantlet owner Izzi Brown said: “I am quite lucky in terms of where my shop is located because there’s lots of free parking just off the road opposite, so I feel like it doesn’t affect this end of town as much.”
Parking review
A Thanet District Council spokesperson said: “Parking across the district is something we’re reviewing this year.
“Current restrictions in Broadstairs reflect the need to provide safe places for people to park when accessing the town’s amenities whilst allowing for the free flow of traffic. We are responsible for enforcing parking restrictions and would encourage people to use designated parking bays and car parks.
“There are charges for these facilities, but we do operate year-round free parking on Saturdays in selected car parks across the district as well as time-limited free parking in certain spaces.”
In December Thanet council appointed Ethos Consultants, highway and transportation specialists, to prepare a strategic review of parking across the district.
Following the review, a new Parking Strategy will be developed to set out the future of parking requirements for the district, balancing residents’ needs with growing visitor numbers.
Ethos Consultants have been analysing parking data and an engagement exercise to gather feedback from members of the public is due to take place.
There will be 10 engagement events held during the development phase of the strategy. The sessions will be a mix of virtual and in person meetings, with some open to the general public. Targeted stakeholder sessions will also be held, involving local businesses and councillors.
The draft strategy will be presented to Cabinet for approval.
Cabinet Member with responsibility for parking, Cllr Heather Keen, said: “Our current parking infrastructure requires improvement, including car parks and on street parking. Working with Ethos will provide the specialist support we need to progress this and to make confident decisions around future investment.
“I would encourage local people to participate in our open engagement sessions when we begin the consultation. Understanding the needs of our customers is a priority to achieve a collaborative and joined up approach.”
Thanet council says advances in technology mean there will be more options for parking payment and car park management to explore.
