The Municipality of Eindhoven pays far too little attention to the Woensel Shopping Centre. According to business owners, the number of visitors has been decreasing for years. There are also more and more open shops.
“Enough is enough. The city must invest in this shopping area”, they say. “We have to pay more and more – tax, permits if we want to organise something. But we do not get anything back from the Council.”
“We also have to pay for new street furniture and flower boxes out of our own pockets. This is to keep the centre attractive for visitors”, Marcel Emmen, Chairperson of the Woensel Shopping Centre’s Shopkeepers’ Association, says.
Things getting worse
According to Emmen, business owners have already had several meetings with the Municipality. “But these discussions lead to nothing. (The Council) does not do anything with our comments”. That is why he is speaking out. “Shopping districts are having a hard time of it everywhere. But things are getting worse here. Year after year, the number of visitors drops by three to four per cent”.
The shopkeepers think the Municipality should, therefore, set aside money to keep the shopping centre attractive. That would result in funds that can be used for marketing. “Currently this money is only used for activities in the centre”, the Shopkeepers’ Association writes in an angry letter.
Accessibility should be improved too, they say. For example, the thoroughfares on Winston Churchilllaan and Sterrenlaan are insufficient. Furthermore, paid parking on, among other things, shopping Sundays should be abolished. According to the business owners, the number of shoppers has decreased by 20%, since the introduction of paid parking at Woensel Shopping Centre.
Source: Studio040
Translator: Bob
Editor: Melinda Walraven
