AFTER months of wondering, worries and even rows, Oldham’s new market is officially open for business.
And if the queue of people snaking around the building before the ribbon was even cut was anything to go by, it will be a hit.
The new facility, at the site of the former TJ Hughes store, was unveiled on a chilly morning on Saturday, March 28.
The cold did not impact the enthusiasm of the people who had waited for the £38 million space, which links to The Spindles shopping centre and opens into Parliament Square, to open.
Nor did it affect those who have a stall inside, as Anton Jaskiewicz, of The Battery Shop, testified.
He said: “I’m hoping it improves everyone’s lives because the town centre needs a boost and I think the council has done a good job.
“It looks beautiful, tidy and fantastic really.
“Before in the old market, when it was winter it was cold. When it was summer it was hot. This is like t-shirt weather this time of year.
“We’ll know better in a few weeks how popular it will be, but I think it’ll be popular because of Spindles walk through.
“And everyone worked hard in the week leading to today to make it better. People have been constantly up and down ladders!”
About 45 traders have relocated from the Tommyfield site to what is simply known as The Market.
And queues quickly formed at stalls, Oldham Council leader, Cllr Arooj Shah, outlined her hopes.
She said: “I always knew it was going to be alright. I just think when change happens, people get really nervous. It’s human nature, isn’t it?
“But I think if I went back to them in five years’ time and said, ‘Do you want to go back?’ they’d be like ‘no.’
“The reality about this space is that it’s modern, it’s new, the old place was looking really tired, and they deserve this and I want them to just thrive in it.
“This was long overdue. It should have happened a long time ago and I just want the people of Oldham to understand and appreciate that we will always be a marketing town.
“And I want the traders in here to just do really well.
“They’ve got natural footfall here. We’re right near the Spindles, we’ve got our new event space, you’ve got Parliament Square, you’ve got the cafes, the shops, the restaurants and we’re going to continue with a wider regeneration.
“Oldham has always had something going for it and now we can now finally see it in reality.”
Oldham’s new market attracted parliamentary interest as Oldham West and Royton MP Jim McMahon got a close-up look at what has been created.
He said: “The thing that is probably most inspiring is just how much people are rallying behind it.
“People naturally are nervous about change. Because Tommyfield, for more than 100 years, has been a staple of Oldham’s identity, our history, in a town where a lot of change has happened, people do hold on to the certainty of what they know.
“Naturally people question whether that’s a good change or one that’s going to be worrying. In the end, the proof is in the pudding.
“Also behind every counter is a person, that’s the thing that makes a market a market, different to your big international, national stores.
“They’re all local people who have invested something in themselves in our town.”
@ggc_media After months of wondering, worries and even rows, Oldham’s new market is officially open for business. And if the queue of people snaking around the building before the ribbon was even cut was anything to go by, it will be a hit. The new facility, at the site of the former TJ Hughes store, was unveiled on a chilly morning on Saturday, March 28. Read more: https://saddind.co.uk/oldhams-new-market-an-instant-hit-at-grand-opening/ #oldham #market #news #fyp
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