2023-09-25 17:48:00
What is the future of downtown Châtelet? Question asked many times over the years. And that the Ecolo group deemed it useful to rest during the last council meeting as the partial opening of Frunpark, in Châtelineau, approaches. The responses made by the non-profit organization Châtelet Centre-ville, read by Commerce alderman Alpaslan Beklevic, provided a certain amount of information, often reassuring… in a context which has not been resplendent for a long time.
Responsible for revitalizing the center of the Chatelettaine entity, particularly on a commercial level, the non-profit organization first put forward figures. If, as the Greens pointed out, businesses have recently lowered their shutters permanently in the city center, the balance is barely less than a year ago: 62 empty cells compared to 59 in July 2022. With positive notes: two new businesses opened their doors this summer, pre-opening work is underway in four cells, and others are in the process of being occupied.
A city center characterized by local shops, according to the non-profit organization. Certainly, she can only acknowledge, many businesses have been lost in twenty years “like almost all city centers”, citing Charleroi, Gilly and Jumet among the biggest losers. But local shops would therefore have allowed Châtelet to do well. Which also makes the non-profit organization say that this specificity will avoid competition from Frunpark which welcomes large brands, for example household appliances, or even Intersport .
Downtown manager looks to the future. Because, he says, today’s commerce has adapted to new consumption habits, in particular by ensuring digital visibility or selling online. To help merchants in their digital transition, the non-profit organization relays information from the Digital commerce site. In addition, traders can also benefit from Walloon aid for the opening or repositioning of businesses: the Proximity Objective. An initiative supported by Châtelet centre-ville by relaying the access criteria on its website and that of the City, by organizing information or, at the end of this year, by carrying out a double poster campaign highlighting value empty cells.
Finally, recalls the ASBL, the business and commercial incubator, planned in the old way Fiancée within the framework of Urban Renewal, should serve as a lever for new activities. Alderman for Economic Development, Michel Mathy raised the possibility of adapting the cadastral income of businesses to the reality of the city center. He also announced that the idea of a private-public impulse fund, intended to buy empty cells and then offer them for rental to young traders, was not buried. It will still be necessary to negotiate with the De Vlier group, promoter of Frunpark.
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