Victoria Croweof Progress Close, Ledbury, thinks store will not be of long-term benefit (From Hereford Times)
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Victoria Croweof Progress Close, Ledbury, thinks store will not be of long-term benefit
7:00am Tuesday 31st January 2012 in Letters
I AM currently a student at John Masefield sixth form, and have followed with interest the plan for the superstore development in Ledbury.
I cannot understand how anyone can think that to build such a huge store could possibly be a benefit to Ledbury.
People of my age are not being told the facts about these developments and are being attracted by the hype of the big supermarkets. I can see that all of the small shops would not survive if this massive store was built and I am very concerned about the amount of pollution that the increased amount of traffic coming through Ledbury would create.
The long term effects on small towns by large superstores is well documented and I would hope that people take the time to find out all of the facts before reaching a decision.
Although developers always promise that they will provide more jobs, these are not proper careers. They tend to be part time jobs with no prospect for advancement. What we need in Ledbury is to try to encourage businesses and industry into the town, which will create essential jobs, such as technology and engineering with real career prospects for the youth of Ledbury.
I hope people will bother to find out how towns are ruined by these massive organisations and think about how to keep young people in small towns by providing proper jobs, not just shelf stacking.
VICTORIA CROWE, Progress Close, Ledbury.
Comments(3)
Colin J Marschall
says...
11:41pm Wed 1 Feb 12
LOOTS supporter
says...
9:23am Fri 10 Feb 12
Colin J Marschall says...
11:31pm Wed 1 Feb 12
I'd like to divulge a few of the facts you seem to think you are not being told .. specifically about your comments on jobs.
While I agree that Ledbury most certainly does need to encourage businesses and industry to the town, it just isn't happening .. how many new businesses have opened in Ledbury in your 17 years of life that offer the equivalent of 100 full time jobs - I can think of only one that comes close. To say that "shelf Stacking" is not a "proper job" is being quite unkind to a large number of working mothers and older people as they see this type of work as a "proper job", you also may not know that Sainsbury's are willing to offer anybody who works for them the chance to study for a nationally recognised qualification in such things as becoming a butcher or baker. There are a number of documented people who have started working for Sainsbury's part-time and now are managers or higher within the company, remember not all students leave school with good qualifications, what Sainsbury's offer is a chance for them to forge a career .. how many other national companies do you know that will give an unqualified young person that chance.
I will now move onto your pollution point, as you are no doubt aware the LOTS group are in talks with Tesco's about re-developing their current store (to a size that is only just smaller than the one they proposed to build OOT I may add), they are proclaiming this as the "silver bullet" the answer to everyones prays. I do hope you will remind them of the pollution aspect and the increase in traffic and the need for "proper jobs".