It really is a wonder
A FEW weeks back, I wrote about the importance of the old Woolworth unit in Broadwater Street West being re-occupied to help all of the surrounding businesses in Broadwater with passing trade.
Unfortunately, I was given information from a very reliable source last weekend which all but scuppers any suggestion I might have made.
I am told the rent on the unit is 35,000 a year, coupled with a rates bill of 15,000.
Clearly, you don't have to be Carol Vorderman to work out that any business has got to find nearly 1,000 every week before they even turn the key to the door, let alone put a light on and pay themselves or any staff.
Surely in these difficult times, shouldn't the respective landlords have some kind of reality check?
Even if they slashed the rent by 50 per cent on the ex-Woolies building, that would be 17,500 a year more than they are currently getting.
But even then, it's probably something fairly large scale to even afford that kind of outlay.
In my column, I did mention the prospect of some kind of restaurant facility.
It appears that the town, specifically Chapel Road, is awash with Chinese restaurants.
Perhaps the next one that considers opening should look north to Broadwater?
As for the issue of the landlords, the advent of wheelie bins stopped Worthing being a "black bag town".
Looking at the amount of empty shop units, perhaps some of the landlords should go into one of our coffee establishments and have a smell because unless some of them start being realistic, "To let" will be the most common sign in the town.
LAST Sunday, my club, Ferring, had a fixture in Pagham so, en route, I drove along Bognor seafront.
I have to take my hat off to the good burghers of Bognor Regis who seem to have worked hard with their seafront.
Even for the end of October, on what was a mild Sunday, it seemed to be a vibrant place.
Perhaps even more telling, with three Worthing youngsters I had in the car, was when we drove past Bognor Pier.
"Is that it?" was one comment, "Not a patch on Worthing Pier" was another. Out of the mouths of babes?
Perhaps, but bang on all the same, in Worthing, have we sold ourselves short with our pier over the years?
As "entertaining" as the amusements are, providing your kids are under the age of 10, nothing much has changed in recent years.
In my opinion, what the council needs to do is outsource the amenity, get someone like the Noble brothers who run the pier at Brighton, one of the biggest beach front attractions in the country, put an extension on the end of pier and have a funfair on there that will attract visitors to the town.
Then again, all the time we have people on the council who see Worthing as a town by the sea rather than a "seaside town", I doubt it will ever happen.
MANY thanks to all of the readers who took the time and trouble to contact me about the demise of the old Rivoli cinema in Worthing.
Pete Stevens from Broadwater informs me that the Chapel Road picturehouse burned down in 1960, and the last film to be shown was The Cruel Sea, starring Jack Hawkins.
Berni Cozzi then came up with a day and time, stating that as far as he remembers, it was a Tuesday afternoon when the fire started.
While out shopping on Saturday afternoon – yes, ladies, as a 1990s man, even I know my way round a supermarket – a Herald reader at Sainsbury's identified to me as "Mac" on his name badge, said it was in the early hours of the morning.
So while some of the "smoke has cleared" from last week, can any reader back up either timing of the fire?
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Weather for Worthing
Sunday 27 May 2012
Today
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