BOURNE COMMENT

A personal view of issues
and events

by REX NEEDLE

MORE FOOD, GLORIOUS FOOD, IS ON THE WAY

We are to have yet another food outlet in Bourne at a time when the town centre has enough to feed the five thousand.

I have written a similar cautionary tale several times in the past twenty years and still they come, the latest being J D Wetherspoon, the public house and restaurant chain, who are buying the retail premises at 44-48 North Street owned by the hardware business of J W Wand which closed in May, so adding to the many cafes and restaurants which now dominate this thoroughfare, once renowned for those small shops which were the hallmark of market towns such as Bourne.

But those days have gone. The butcher, the baker and the candlestick maker have all become victims of the supermarket revolution followed by the burgeoning success of the Internet, leaving vacant premises that once provided a useful public service prey to estate agencies, financial services and charity shops which now dominate our town centres.

The fast food habit has secured such a firm grip on these tenancies that they have captured a major share of the retail market and a stranger driving through our town centre today would think that here was a community forever in need of feeding for how else could these businesses survive.

The majority serve takeaway food, a commodity once dominated by our traditional fish and chips, but the range has now extended to a more diverse choice which is regularly advertised with colourful brochures delivered house to house in the hope of attracting more customers.

Sample dishes from recent menus have an unmistakable eastern flavour for we are being offered a variety of pizzas, kebabs, curry and burgers and a whole list of specialities with such titles as king prawn massala, lamb pasanda, tikka biriany and meat vindaloo and there seems to be chips and coke with everything and even free ice cream if you spend over a certain amount. One of these menus that recently dropped through the letter box was offering over 260 different dishes from one establishment which is indeed rather different from the cod and chips and mushy peas which was once the only form of takeaway food in years past.

There are still outlets in Bourne where you can buy the more traditional fare such as sandwiches, cakes, buns and coffee but the pizza parlour and curry takeaway now reign supreme and their garish shop fronts give them an unmistakable presence in the street scene. Then there are our twelve public houses all offering food in some form or another as well as several cafes plus the supermarkets which are all well stocked with ready to eat specialities. We therefore have around 40 outlets in Bourne which serve food in some form or another and as with Wetherspoon, more are moving in annually.

But not all planning applications for new food outlets slip through almost unnoticed, the most high profile in recent years being that of the Costa Coffee chain which took over the former estate agent’s premises at No 10 North Street, next to Lloyds Banks in the town centre. There was determined opposition from the town council when the application was discussed in the autumn of 2010 and councillors voted against the scheme on the grounds that our current independent shops must be protected.

Their decision incurred the wrath of the Bourne Business Chamber and many residents who launched a protest group on the Internet social networking site Facebook. Costa Coffee also retaliated by posting a notice in the window of the North Street premises accusing councillors of a narrow minded approach to new businesses coming into the town and added: “If they continue with such an approach then Bourne will become a ghost town with shoppers disappearing to Spalding, Stamford and Bourne to buy their goods rather than here.”

Bourne Town Council, however, has no planning powers and is only asked to comment on applications and although this particular one did not find favour with members, their disapproval was sufficient to spark a lively debate, not only on the merits of another food outlet but also the ability of our local representatives to deliver judgment on such matters. In the event, the final decision rested with South Kesteven District Council which was unlikely to pass up another opportunity to collect the business rate on otherwise empty premises and therefore gave the go-ahead the following December and another coffee shop was on the way.

The town council has since been reconstituted and we will have to wait and see whether the majority of new members will have the same conviction in opposing the Wetherspoon application but the possible effect of the new outlet is already causing some concern among the owners of our more popular public houses although the Bourne Business Chamber has nailed its colours to the mast. Spokesman Paul Ross told The Local newspaper (October 9th) that they welcomed their arrival. “We ran a campaign to get a Costa and a Lidl”, he said. “It is growing the brand of Bourne and there is certainly a market for a Wetherspoon’s.”

Since Costa Coffee arrived, there have been others, so reinforcing the trend of eating out or buying takeaway meals which reflects the changing habits of the way we live. Housewives cook less, bachelor men and women now eat out more often than they do at home and family outings to McDonald’s are often a weekly occurrence while birthday parties and other anniversary celebrations are always a good reason to book a table for twelve at some popular eaterie. Even the traditional Sunday lunch is now likely to be spent in the carvery of a local hostelry rather than the dining room at home while going out for a meal in the evening is no longer the special occasion it was but a regular event.

Even the ever popular fish and chip shops are enjoying the boom having extended their range from cod and haddock to a variety of other dishes to keep pace with the trend for fast foods and as more outlets open the demand appears to be unstoppable.

But there must soon be a saturation point. It may come with Wetherspoon or perhaps the one after that because there are not enough customers around to satisfy supply and although Bourne continues to expand, newcomers are not moving in at a sufficiently fast rate to keep them all in business and soon some outlets will start feeling the pinch. Changing times may not always be welcome for everyone.

Note: This article was published by the Bourne web site on 16th October 2015