Master plan call to help ailing high street shops

Eston High Street has a number of empty shop units

Calls have been made for a council to draw up a master plan to help ailing high street shops.

Redcar and Cleveland councillor Lynn Pallister said, despite best efforts to regenerate town and district centres, problems still remained with empty retail units.

Research showed smaller shops were easier to let but larger ones tended to "linger as a longer term challenge".

A council report said officers were looking at a number of solutions, including "external funding opportunities".

The report said powers could be used to tackle shops "lying empty for years" through the issuing of section 215 notices, which force owners to tidy up properties,.

So-called "rental auctions" were also an option.

These can require landlords to rent out persistently vacant commercial units to new tenants, such as local businesses or even community groups, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

A town centre grant scheme funded by the Tees Valley Combined Authority led to 15 businesses being awarded £131,688 for improvements.

The council also recently adopted free car parking initiatives in some areas in a bid to boost shopper footfall.