| Topic: | The long slow decline of Devonshire Road | |
| Posted by: | Jeremy Parkinson | |
| Date/Time: | 20/07/23 10:15:00 |
| After reading the item about the change of use for the Italian Job, I took a walk down Devonshire Road on evening recently. It seemed to have visibly declined since the last time I walked along it, although there were lots of new businesses, there were quite a few gone in the few months since I was last there. The attempt to create a table cafe culture seems to have faltered. Although it was a pleasant warm evening there were few people sitting out and although access restrictions were meant to able there were a steady stream of vehicles using the road. Are the restrictions actually enforced? If not it looks like residents to the south have worked out they can drive through as they have always done. This means that the restrictions serve only to discourage potential customers confused by the signs. However, it would be wrong to blame recent measures for what is happening. The real problem seems to be the relentless push of residential into what used to be a commercial area. The Feathers went a long time ago but we have also seen the sites of the Duke of York and the Devonshire Arms converted into residential. Retail and commercial space south of Ingress Street has virtually disappeared. There are some positive signs. The Whispering Oyster has clearly attracted more people to the end of the street and that will be an important bellwether for its ongoing health but that was a rare bright spot. One cafe owner I know there says that many of the first floor units in the area which previously were offices have now been converted to residential and therefore it has become much more difficult to operate and get licence extensions. He thought that the lack of a hospitality industry tenant for the cafe restaurant site was due to uncertainty over future licensing hours. To me the potential of this road is great but it appears to be being shifted in the wrong direction at the moment. A strategy needs to be developed that ensures the robustness of hospitality businesses there particularly and pushes back on the encroachment of residential. |