Agenda item

To consider a report by the Director for the Economy, copy attached as item 8.

Before the Committee was a report by the Director for the Economy, a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of these minutes, a copy of which had been circulated to all members. The report before members provided the Committee with a detailed understanding of the approach being undertaken to deliver Seasonal Concessions across Adur and Worthing and how they supported economic activity.

The Head of place and Economy was present at the meeting to answer questions

A member asked the following question: Given that there is a finite amount of space along the promenade in Worthing and that the space is shared by cyclists and pedestrians, is there a maximum number of pop up businesses that will be licensed along Worthing seafront. Based on the positive feedback received about the concession programme, the Councils had grown the available areas to a manageable but yet visible programme in recent years. The Authorities were mindful not to have too many concessions on Worthing seafront as the promenade had multiple uses, so the current number was foreseen as the maximum. However, things did change and the officer would liaise with Members and adapt the programme based on feedback if it was needed. It’s was worth noting that the authorities restricted concessions to a maximum of 3 tables and 12 chairs for this very purpose as well, with all running east west, rather than north south to not hinder the overall promenade.

A Member asked the following question: Paragraph 5.2 on agenda page 60 - With the increase of concessions operating along Marine Parade - licensed concession traders who are not permitted to leave their vehicles at the licensed location overnight, are often seen parked nearby along Marine Parade in "car parking only" spaces after the close of business instead. What will you do to further support these small local businesses and increase provision of 'any vehicle parking' availability - so that they can park nearby to their allocated licensed locations? Members were told that the current programme was designed for businesses to ‘setup’ and ‘set down’ on the same day, with businesses responsible for their units whilst not accessing their concession site. For all of the businesses, they take their unit back to their home premises. There were 3 businesses that currently parked on Marine Parade, all of which were local residents – all based in Central Ward - in the controlled parking zone. The Council was in dialogue with those concession operators to seek alternative parking provision and, where possible, encourage businesses to work together to find solutions. For example, some were exploring the option to share combined storage parking out of town. The businesses were keen to work with the Councils to explore this as these businesses had experienced break-ins to their trailers when parked on Marine Parade overnight.

A Member asked the following question: What work has been done to assess the financial impact of concessions on existing 12 local businesses, who operate from fixed premises all year round? The Committee was told that the Councils had not undertaken any particular research but was mindful of the need for the businesses as part of the concession programme to not hinder but provide ‘added value’ to the locality they served. Where possible the Councils tried to place concessions in areas where there wasn’t direct competition with existing businesses in fixed premises. The Councils continually listened to feedback from all quarters regarding the programme and barring a few comments coming out of the first lockdown, there was not awareness of any formal complaints from the business community about the programme. There were a number of fixed premise businesses expanding to have a concession licence as well.

A Member asked the following question: While 'meanwhile uses' are increasingly popular, some businesses in our town centre feel that they are disadvantageous to shops/Cafe owners etc who have greater overheads plus provision of facilities such as toilets and handwashing. How can a balance be achieved between competing needs? Members were told that there was interest from the existing business base. It was understood that there was a need to balance the value of the programme as not to hinder the businesses who had fixed premises. The offer was very different - with different challenges and opportunities for both. The Councils, where possible, sought to avoid putting ‘similar’ businesses in the same vicinity, which came back to how many and where the Councils had cluster opportunities.

A Member asked the following question: When does the Council plan to mandate, rather than encourage sustainability features such as solar power? For example at events in Steyne Gardens last summer diesel generators were widely used. The Committee were told that where possible power points would be installed to move away from generator power. The Council was now moving towards discouraging certain types of fuel and encouraging sustainable practices and materials.

A Member asked the following question: I'm pleased to see a joined up and strategic approach to seasonal concessions. We have seen in PFOP the commitment to help small businesses to thrive. What measures can the Council introduce to support small businesses running seasonal concessions to thrive? The Committee was told that those businesses taking seasonal concessions were automatically plugged into business support opportunities through the Economic Development team. When

opportunities were presented, for example grant funding, marketing and promotion or skills support, they were included in those circulations. Equally, the Council and Time for Worthing, continued to ‘spotlight’ a number of operators to increase visibility of that business and the programme as a whole. Furthermore, Officers were always on hand to listen to thoughts and ideas from the businesses as to how the programme, and wider support, could be improved. The team asked for evaluation forms after

each season, with questions including ‘how did you find the support’ from the Councils. This helped shape our future programmes across the Service, not only for concessions.

Resolved: That JOSC notes the overall approach to Seasonal Concessions to deliver place-based interventions and activities to support local businesses and provide additional destinations for our communities and visitors to enjoy.