Bedminster is get a share of £1.2m in Government funding under a pilot scheme recommended by retail guru Mary Portas to revitalise the UK’s high streets.
The South Bristol suburb is one of 12 centres chosen as first-round winners. Among the ideas likely to be tried out in Bedminster are street art and street theatre, a bicycle rickshaw service and a parking review to improve traffic.
It will also get a dedicated contact point in Government to provide advice and support to identify and overcome challenges to local business growth along with free support from industry leaders and opportunities to meet and discuss the project with fellow pilot centres.
More than 370 applications were received from across the country from towns, villages and city districts. A second round for 12 additional pilots will be announced by the end of July.
Mary Portas said: "I've been deeply touched by both the quality and creativity of the bids and the momentum Britain's first town teams have generated in just a few short weeks.
"It is now clearer to me than ever that Britain wants its town centres revitalised and the energy and accountability for that needs to rest with the people who live and do business there."
Other first-round winners are Bedford, Croydon, Dartford, Liskeard, Margate, Market Rasen, Nelson, Newbiggin by the Sea, Stockport, Stockton-on-Tees and Wolverhampton.
Bristol council leader Simon Cook said: "Bristol is well known for its vibrant high streets and thriving markets but it’s important that we do all we can to support traders across the city who play a crucial role in our local economy.
"Congratulations to everyone behind Greater Bedminster's bid. To be one of 12 areas chosen, out of 370, is a real achievement and recognition of the strong case they made.”
He said the news was another good example of Bristol's success over the past 12 months in attracting central Government funding such as £114m for Bus Rapid Transit, £60m for new school places and up to £12m from the Urban Broadband Fund.
But accountancy firm KPMG's Helen Dickinson questioned whether the tide of consumer sentiment can be turned since high streets are no longer viewed as the prime shopping destination.
"We must not be blind to the elephant in the room. The retail sector itself is undergoing fundamental structural change, as evidenced by the ongoing retrenchment of chain retailers to higher volume locations,” she said. “The demise of many troubled UK high streets is due to the proliferation of obsolete tertiary or poor secondary sites and the closure of stores by service (as opposed to retail) operators whose services are electronically transferrable and hence have moved their operations online."
She added that local authorities will need to be flexible when considering change of use applications, viewing them in the context of what the modern high street looks like now, and not basing their decision on the stereotypical mix of shops that we were used to seeing in the past.
In March, the Government announced it had accepted "virtually all" 28 recommendations made in the report it commissioned from Mary Portas on reviving the UK’s high streets.
They included making parking more affordable and disincentives for landlords who left shops empty.
