We don't want amusement arcade or a cut-price shop on Woolies site
Top Northampton councillors have said they would not like to see the town's former Woolworths store turned into an amusement arcade or a cut-price shop.
The leader of Northampton Borough Council, Councillor Tony Woods (Lib Dem, St Davids) said the prime town centre location of the Abington Street store, which closed on Saturday, could be an ideal target for companies such as Tesco.
He said: "It's a very important shop. I would have thought it could be attractive for a Tesco Extra or something like that.
"I would oppose an amusement arcade. I think there are enough arcades in town and I don't think it's a use of that shop unit that would bring life and benefit to the town.
"We need things that are going to make Abington Street lively and not kill it."
He added: "It might be too big to fill quickly; retail is going through a really tough time at the moment."
The leader of the opposition at the Guildhall, Councillor Tim Hadland (Con, Weston) added: "I would like to think it could be a quality store that would attract people to Northampton, like one of the quality chains, not a down-market one."
The Woolworths store had been due to close on Friday along with 200 of the chain's 800 branches. However, the decision was taken to suspend the closures for 24-hours to sell as much of the company's remaining stock as possible.
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Thursday 09 February 2012
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