Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Harringay Traders to Offer Shoppers' Parking Permits
Traders on Green Lanes in Harringay will be offering shoppers who drive to Harringay free parking permits to encourage them to return to the area to shop.
Traders on Green Lanes will be trialling a free shoppers permit parking scheme for a limited period in December and January.
Funded as part of the central government 'Portas Scheme', the trial programme has been designed by the traders themselves. It echoes their concerns that what they see as high parking charges are damaging their trade, much of which now comes from out of town rather than from local residents.
If the scheme is successful, the traders will be looking at how they can tackle parking charges in the long term.
Tags for Forum Posts: high street parking, high streets
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Alan Stanton on
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Thanks, Hugh.
It's so bleedin' obvious, I wonder why I and other councillors didn't think of at least having a trial of such a scheme. (Or perhaps some did and we'll discover who at the photo-op.)
You say the traders designed it. Have you any idea of the steps taken to get this far and who was involved? Do you know how much it's costing and whether the traders are chipping-in? How about Andreas Michli's shop; is that included as it's off Green Lanes?
I couldn't find the scheme mentioned on the council's website - has anyone else spotted it? I asked my partner Zena Brabazon but she'd not heard of it. (Zena is one of the three St Ann's ward councillors and chairs the St Ann's & Harringay Area Forum.) Were the other local ward councillors aware of this trial?
Obviously, I'm interested for shops in my own ward as well. If this is successful there is potential for other parts of Haringey.
(Tottenham Hale ward councillor)
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Permalink Reply by Old-Age-Emporium(OAE) on
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"Park, our Merchant Princes sing:
'Glory to out Trader King!'"
I see my fellow residential consumers (Maggie, John and Michael below) are into home deliveries, Oyster cards and boycotting. As a pedestrian & resident patron of the Green Lanes Traders, can I just claim free cobbling on shoe leather, a year's supply of walking stick ferrules, and maybe a new rucksack-for-life. Without these subsidies I can no longer shop and many GL businesses will fold before the year's out. True, Tao Sports and Shef's Hair & Beauty may survive my absence, but think of the others.
Afterthoughts: 1. since nearly all our Merchant Princes live elsewhere and since, we are told, all their worthwhile Customers drive in from elsewhere, why inflict their wargames on poor innocent peaceloving Harringay. Ship out, guys, and we'll survive.
2. Since half your crumbs from the High Street Innovation Fund is going to tempt your cafes & restaurants out onto our pavements to allow their patrons to ingest ever increasing exhaust particulates with their lamb shish and dolmothakia al fresco, will you first spend a few quid to bribe Cllr Canver's 'En
force
ment' to persuade Pound Shops & Plumbers [& Garages & Diagnosic Centers(sic) on the Ladder's parallel upright, Wightman Rd] to remove their toilet rolls & soil pipes & junk vehicles from our footways into their premises proper ?
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Permalink Reply by Michael Anderson on
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OAE, as I'm in an exceptionally curmudgeonly mood this evening I have to agree with you. Can we have the pavements back for pedestrians please and get rid of displays of tomatoes that encroach on the footpath, or at least licence them so they have to pay shed loads for the privilege of having me slip on a particularly ripe satsuma.
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Permalink Reply by Hugh on
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Each of the trader groups has spent the money in different ways according to their priorities. In Crouch End for example, some of the money is going to support their local market (Stalls for All outside Budgens). It'll be interesting to see which of the approaches is the most successful.
Taking the Crouch End example, I wonder if some of any future funding might go to help Harringay Market with things like publicity?
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I'd like to see the research that shows that most trade in our section of Green Lanes is from out of town and not local. I would prefer no parking on Green Lanes even if it means more visitor parking in the Ladder and Garden roads, after all the distance between the side roads and the shops is not far, no further than the distance between Sainsburys' car park and their deli counter. That would free up the space for the bus lane, cycle lanes, wider pavements etc. However the free parking tickets seem a good idea and how about some of the bigger stores offering delivery service.
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Perhaps they could offer free, one day Oyster cards to people who've used public transport.
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Permalink Reply by John McMullan on
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Fantastic idea - but you do know that the council can pay for this with funding from the parking enforcement budget, right? It's all "transport" related :)
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Or cycle repair kits or a £5 voucher for the cobbler for those of us who foot slog. I am weary of this incentivisation to drive cars. Perhaps those who turn up at a shop with a bus ticket can be given a discount? This idea will just put more cars on Green Lanes and I detest it.
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Permalink Reply by JulieB on
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I agree Michael and Elle - it would be very interesting to see how takings are affected and having some actual research on shopping demographics.
I would also be interested to know how the permits are going to work - will they only be valid in the current pay and display bays and will people only be allowed one at a time?
The sad fact is the state of the economy means we all have less money to spend (well most of us) so I'm sure it is very tough being a small business at the moment.
But I'm still to be convinced that the majority of shoppers on our little stretch of GL drive in from 'out of town'.
Personally I like the sound of all the other initiatives in Harringay much more than this one.
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I suspect that the traders get feedback from customers who have done things like... sell up their house to developers and move to Palmer's Green. No amount of new custom from us will take this from their memories. It will be interesting to see how their takings are affected by this. Perhaps if we all stayed away while the trial was on they'd get the message.
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Permalink Reply by ElleCarumba on
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I can see people might travel from Palmers Green or elsewhere in London to Harringay to buy bling wedding and evening dresses and assorted gold adornments at the various outlets on Green Lanes as these are not widely available.
Also for some of the restaurants - although its not hard to find decent Turkish food in lots of parts of London now.
but for the greengrocers, poundshops, off licence/newsagents, betting shops, mobile phone unlockers/internet cafes, shops selling random assortments of household products and the numerous hair and beauty shops? Surely no one travels any distance to buy those?
Has any proper research into the demographics of shoppers on Green Lanes ever been done?
Does this mean the shop keepers can award themselves and their staff free parking? Although the young men in fancy cars will probably still prefer to hang out in their vehicles on Green Lanes where there is more of an audience.
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