A GLASGOW-based chartered surveyor has called for action to breathe life into Scottish high streets left trailing in the wake of high-profile retail developments.
Alan Gordon, a partner at DM Hall, was speaking ahead of last week's launch of 185-221 Buchanan Street, Glasgow's latest shopping destination.
Mr Gordon said the success of developer Land Securities in letting the £70 million development, which features the first Scottish stores of US brands Forever 21 and Vans, was further proof of the street's attraction for major retail players.
He also noted the success of other major retail sites in the Glasgow area, pointing out planning applications had been submitted to extend Braehead and Silverburn, and an application from Land Securities and Henderson Global Investors to expand Buchanan Galleries was also being considered by city planners.
These follow the recent refurbishment of the St Enoch Centre in Glasgow, and come as work continues on extending The Fort with a cinema and restaurants.
However, Mr Gordon, one of 120 surveyors employed by DM Hall in Scotland, said it was not necessary to look too far beyond Buchanan Street to see evidence of retail decline.
He said: "Buchanan Street is second only to London [in terms of retail offer]. I think the development at the top of Buchanan Street is evidence of the continuing demand for a premium offer in the street.
"But you don't have to go too far up Sauchiehall Street, or east of Debenhams [on Argyle Street] for it to become really bad. No-one wants to be there – they all want to be in Buchanan Galleries or Silverburn, the big shopping malls."
Mr Gordon said there were many towns around Scotland, including Dumbarton, Lanark and Ayr, where the retail capacity was now around double what it needed to be.
He criticised a Government proposal to cut the rates discount received by the owners of empty properties, and challenged planners to come up with solutions to promote town-centre vibrancy.
Measures such as street landscaping, cheaper car parking, a reduction in business rates and changes to the planning system to encourage alternative use for empty shop units could improve the look of some towns, he said.
The Scottish Government said it was "well aware of the challenges facing our high streets".
A spokesman said an advisory body, including the Federation of Small Businesses, the Association of Town Centre Managers and the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, had been appointed to carry out a National Review of Town Centres and would publish its first report in April.
He added business rates had been "either eliminated or substantially reduced for three out of every five commercial properties" because of the Government's relief package.
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