Hexham’s former Tourist Information Centre at Wentworth car park has been closed since 2016 and been available to let..
The Council has been negotiating with a charity to let the building.
Councillor Derek Kennedy said “This is a key building as it is the first many visitors to Hexham will pass as they park their car. It is an underwhelming choice to have the first shop you find to be a charity shop. I would like the Council to have a bit more ambition, this would be a great location for an independent trader or a good quality clothing store as there is a large regular footfall.
Charity shops do have their place in the retail mix and I regularly donate clothes, books etc to these shops however I know lots of people want Hexham to be a thriving town and not overly dominated by charity shops. I will continue to press the Council to get the right investment into our town.”
Following a potential backlash the Council suddenly pulled out of the lease agreement with the charity and is now re-considering the options available for this important gateway site. Unfortunatley the poor handling of this situation has left the charity out of pocket due to planning application costs.