Businesses not keen to move in (From Croydon Guardian)

Businesses not keen to move in

4:23pm Thursday 24th January 2008

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Only four new business have moved to Croydon this financial year, according to a report.

Figures in a council document which showed the disappointing level of investment in the borough were discussed at a council meeting.

The document said that the target to attract "appropriate inward investors" had been exceeded but up until September last year, the council had only managed to secure four new "substantial" businesses - despite wanting to attract 14 before the end of the year.

Councillor Tim Pollard, cabinet member for finance, defended the figures and claimed they were average for the time of the year.

He said: "It is not a simple process attracting inward substantial investment so the numbers involved are necessarily low but when you get it right the benefits are very substantial."

In addition, he assured the Croydon Guardian the council will be pursuing a strategy for achieving this through various initiatives, including making the town centre greener and more pedestrian-friendly, providing the right sort of accommodation and "progressively eliminating the grey concrete and hence improving Croydon's appeal."

However, opposition Councillor George Ayres spoke about his concerns this week.

He said: "It is a very low number and if it is accurate and true then it is very worrying because we are in a time when there is great competition between towns and communities for investment and Croydon's record is not the best.

"It is essential that if we have ambitions to turn Croydon into a city then we have to be successful for this investment to work, with regard to jobs and the general community. I think this is a great source of concern and I am interested in what the council and business organisations plan to do about it."

Matthew Sims, general manager at Croydon Chamber of Commerce, said: "Attracting further inward investment into Croydon is vital if we are to grow and develop as predicted. A key element in reaching our targets for investment is the need to effectively communicate the positive aspects of Croydon to a wider audience.

"Not only that we should be spotting the opportunities and adopting a more pro-active response to ensure potential investors are aware of the benefits to locating to Croydon."

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