Wrexham town centre regeneration action call

Plans to develop a single strategy to regenerate Wrexham town centre have been drawn up.

A report has said uniting council departments with different responsibilities would help improve the town's prospects.

The strategy aims to reduce the number of empty shop units, increase visitors with more public events and reduce antisocial behaviour.

It is being discussed at a council meeting on Wednesday afternoon.

Town centre forum business group chairman Andrew Atkinson welcomed the report and said it could lead to be a "huge turnaround for Wrexham".

'Action not words'

The report highlights how one department looks after town centre economic strategy while others deal with cleaning up the streets or looking after licensing and public protection issues although they share a common goal.

It recommends a single group taking forward all issues that tackle town centre improvements.

Mr Atkinson said: "It has got to be action and not words from the council."

He said the authority was taking positive steps with shops' vacancy rates reducing due to more independent shops opening, but he admitted bigger units formerly occupied by multi national firms were "harder to fill".

This month, work started on a £4.5m development at Wrexham's People's Market to incorporate an arts centre.