Give Malton a chance

And he believes retailing in Malton has an unexploited potential which could be boosted by encouraging motorists off the A64 and into the town centre.

Coun Keith Knaggs spent last Saturday morning visiting shops in the town, at the invitation of members of Thrive, the residents' group, after he commented recently that he did most of his shopping at Monks Cross.

It was recently disclosed by national consultants that Malton is losing £18.5 million a year to places such as Monks Cross and Clifton Moor in York, and Scarborough.

Coun Knaggs said he had been pleasantly surprised at what Malton had to offer shoppers.

But believed businesses would benefit from enhanced signing into the historic town from the A64 and from the possibility of upmarket Waitrose moving in.

He said at the end of his fact-finding trip that local people should be encouraged to alter their shopping habits and use Malton rather than going out of town.

Armed with a list which included everything from groceries to computers, Coun Knaggs said he had been "very impressed" with what Malton had to offer and was especially pleased with his purchases of wine and fruit.

He visited the farmer's market, Dales, Malton Relish, Woodheads, Fox's butchers, Malton Fisheries, Ambiente, Beechams, FX Computers and Suddaby's, saying he was surprised at the range of goods on sale.

He added that he felt Malton's centre would benefit from a "magnet" such as a neighbourhood-size Waitrose, which would attract shoppers into other town centre streets in Malton.

"I don't think Morrison's does that because it is away from the centre, " he said.

He felt the new strategy for Malton town centre, currently under discussion by Ryedale District Council, Fitzwilliam Estate and business and community leaders, would be weighted to favour existing businesses.

He estimated that as many as 80 per cent of Malton area people could do more of their general shopping in the town.

He also asked: "Does Malton set out its stall well enough?"

He added that Business in Action had an excellent website but it was under-publicised and Malton's economy could benefit considerably from better signposting to the town from the A64.

Improving the junctions at each end of Malton bypass - Musley Bank and Brambling Fields - would take away a large amount of heavy through traffic.

"They are fundamental to getting rid of the volume of large trucks, " he said. But he did not believe the volume of traffic was a deterrent to shoppers. "Malton has got what it takes to be a good shopping centre."

Publishing leaflets highlighting the location of shops in the centre in much the same way as such places as the Designer Outlet in York does, would help visiting shoppers, said Coun Knaggs.

Zoe Plummer, a member of Thrive who runs Ambiente tapas bar and restaurant in Malton Market Place with her partner, Tim Sinclair, said: "We were grateful to Coun Knaggs for coming round the shops with us because I think it opened his eyes as to what Malton has to offer.

''The message came over strongly to shoppers to 'give Malton a chance' because it is a good place with individual shops offering goods which in a lot of cases cannot be bought in the out-of-town shopping centres such as Monks Cross.'' Tim Sinclair said: "We have changed our shopping habits since we moved to Malton eight years ago. We find we can buy about 95 per cent of what we need in the town.

''We opened Keith's eyes with what the town has to offer and I think the same would apply to other people if they just give Malton a chance."