September 15 2024
By Lucy Ashton
Retailers in West Dunbartonshire are being reminded there’s still time to apply for a shopfront grant ahead of applications to the scheme closing later this month.
The deadline for the shopfront improvement programme has been set as September 27th with traders having to submit their application for financial assistance to the Council by this date.
So far, 22 projects which have benefited from the fund have already been completed across Alexandria, Clydebank and Dumbarton.
The scheme is aimed at smaller, independent businesses and is provided through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. Individual grants of up to a maximum of £10,000 have been available and aim to help existing landlords and tenants improve the quality and appearance of commercial units as well as increase the attractiveness of shop units within the town centre.
There is also an enhanced grant offer of up to £20,000 for properties within the conservation area which must meet higher standards
Chief Officer of Regulatory and Regeneration, Alan Douglas, said: “I would urge any retailers interested in applying to ensure they do so quickly in order to maximise their chance of benefitting from this funding.
“Improvements to shopfronts throughout our main retail areas will bring benefits to all who trade there and lift the whole area.
“Our regeneration staff are happy to talk business owners through the process if required.”
Businesses are encouraged to make contact with the Council’s regeneration team who are happy to assist traders prior to their application being submitted.
Anyone who currently has a live application as part of the scheme should also ensure that they have submitted all necessary documentation.
The shopfronts should respect the character of the street and the area in general and be in keeping with the overall style and appearance of the building. Where a building is heritage listed, special care will have to be taken when drawing up proposals and undertaking work.
The application form can be downloaded from https://www.west-dunbarton.gov.uk/business/regeneration/funding/shopfront-improvement-grant/ and more information is available by emailing the regeneration team at regeneration@west-dunbarton.gov.uk
Eligibility criteria can also be accessed via this link or by contacting the team.
Any application will be subject to the relevant consents and approval. All works must be completed before the end of March 2025, regardless of when the application was submitted.
Never one to disparage an initiative. As Tesco used to say, “every little helps ”
And sadly it it is too little too late here. Many many properties in the High Street are lying empty, derelict internally and out. Who owns the empty properties is also a good question. And roof gardens, if you get the euphemism, how many afforested roof gardens can you see hanging out of the roofs of these empty derelict properties?
The High Street needs serious money spent on the fabric of these buildings. Demolition in fact is most probably the best answer.
The great Glasgow slums were to a large extent razed to the ground with new appalling low quality 60s and 70s buildings in their place. Belatedly, wiser government, a Tory one in fact, made money available to totally refurbish tenements as opposed to demolition. Partick was one of the areas that benefited from mass tenement refurbishment as opposed the horrendous tenement clear felling of Govan just across the water.
And the point is that it needs the injection of serious government money to revive an area once it has gone as low as the High Street.
Dumbarton High Street is a classic example of that. It is appalling. Moreover, and although a political ploy, which government was it that gave a grant to demolish refurbish the Artizan Centre? Don’t answer that, but maybe, now that there is a new Labour government, they could maybe send some more money to help make Dumbarton a town to be proud of – or would that just be wishful thinking.?