Focus on market in Earlsdon after coronation party shelved

[dutchman]

The party had been planned for the Sunday after the Earlsdon Festival



A community group said it would look at bringing back a market after plans for a coronation party were shelved.

Earlsdon Street 2.0 in Coventry cancelled its High Street coronation party after the application to close the road was turned down.

The city council said some residents objected as it was the week after the road shut for a festival.

Business owner Keiron Knights [pictured] said the group wanted to bring a bit of life back to the area.

Mr Knights, of the Earlsdon Cobbler, said the area had lost its banks and some individual shops.

Dharmender Rai, of Earlsdon Street 2.0, said it had been set up about a year ago to revive the High Street and "make it work" for businesses and residents hit by the cost-of-living crisis.

"It's about bringing the local community together and boosting the local economy - because these guys are struggling at the moment, it's tough gig," he said.

He said over the Christmas period they had a "really successful" street market which attracted about 10,000 people, which he had seen as a "pilot event".

He would now ask people what stalls they would like included in a regular street market.

Its application to close the road for a party on 7 May was initially accepted by the council and the group advertised the event.

However, the council reversed the decision after it said it received two official objections from residents affected by the road closures.

The authority added it had taken into account a survey by Earlsdon 2.0 itself which found 15 people objected to the closure the weekend after the Earlsdon Festival.

[dutchman]

Shop owners launch new street market to boost footfall



Shop owners in a part of Coventry have rallied together to launch a street market, with hopes of boosting the number of people that visit the area.

More than 10,000 people are expected to attend the Earlsdon Street Market on Sunday, between 10:00 BST and 16:00.

Businesses say they want to make it a regular feature and repeat it monthly.

The aim is to attract more people to the area and boost the local economy, organisers say.

About 20 stalls are expected with an array of produce to "bring a farmer's feel back to the high street" Kieran Knight, from Earlsdon's Cobbler's, said.

Plans for the market were revealed earlier in the year, following the success of a similar event at Christmas.

Ann Marie Sage, from Sage Coffee Shop, said: "We just felt that there wasn't enough diversity in the street, there were a lot of cafes and restaurants and people are always talking to me about what they would like to see, so we thought, what about a market?"

"I'm also a resident of Earlsdon and I want to see a community feel back in Earlsdon."