Actor urges council to save shopping centre

An actor has backed a petition to save a shopping centre in Kent which is at risk of being demolished to make way for a car park.

More than 2,500 people have signed a petition against the closure of Park Mall Shopping Centre in Ashford.

Local resident Tom Burke, who starred in BBC dramas including Strike and The Musketeers, says the shopping centre has "consistently felt like the heart of Ashford".

Noel Ovenden, Ashford Borough Council's leader, said: "Despite our best efforts, Park Mall is failing. Dwindling footfall and structural decline have forced our hand, and hard decisions are necessary to halt the drain on our limited resources."

The plan is to demolish the site and replace it with an interim car park.

Mr Burke told BBC Radio Kent the council had not pushed for the rent it was owed as the commercial landlord and had not upkept the shopfronts.

In a message to the council, he said: "Do something. Make it worth people's while, I don't know, be inventive."

Mr Burke said the group behind the petition, which has been submitted to the council, was "not going to stop fighting".

Ovenden said: "With the burden to local taxpayers reaching the colossal sum of over half-a-million pounds a year, the people of Ashford can no longer afford to continue propping up a shopping centre which has sadly reached the end of its useful life."

He said: "Continuing to support this venture could endanger vital public services and we have a responsibility to spend your money wisely.

"As I said in November last year, plans for the full regeneration of the area are still some way off but a short-term solution had to be found to reduce costs and ease the strain on the public purse."

A council spokesperson addressed allegations that suggested they were not in discussions with traders or were ignoring or not supporting them.

"The Council is absolutely engaging with Park Mall tenants – directly and regularly, and we've been offering a wide range of practical support to help them relocate."

They added: "We completely refute any claims to the contrary, made by people who claim to be tenants but are not. Our focus remains on supporting the businesses that are based there."

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