Hereford’s iconic Buttermarket should be refurbished in traditional Victorian style and promote more food and drink produced in the county. This is the view of the majority of local people who took part in the council survey on the future of the landmark building.
Nearly 1000 people made their views known by completing questionnaires distributed to shops and businesses, libraries and information centres, and taking part in an online survey. Nearly two thirds favoured a traditional Victorian interior, while 17 per cent preferred a ‘more modern style’. Almost all the responses (95 per cent) were from people who live in Herefordshire, half of which visit the market about once a week. Most people spend £5 or less each visit.
Herefordshire Council wants to increase the numbers of visitors, the frequency of visits and the amount they spend in the Buttermarket and surrounding businesses in High Town and the City centre. It sees the improvement of the interior of the Buttermarket as key to its plans to support the historic core of the city as a destination for shoppers, visitors and tourists.
An upgrading of the interior market, which started trading in the city in 1860 in butter, cheese and other dairy products, would help underpin the future of independent shops in the city centre, along with other markets.
The survey found that shoppers are more likely to buy fruit and vegetables, meat, fish and game, bread, cakes and dairy products in a refurbished Buttermarket.
Councillor Adrian Blackshaw, cabinet member for economic development, said: “People love the Buttermarket but feel it could be improved and made more attractive, particularly as a focal point for the sale of locally produced products and services in a traditional Victorian setting.
“The council agrees strongly that this landmark building needs to be safeguarded, promoted and polished as ‘the jewel in the crown’ for High Town. This is an integral part of the council’s overall vision for enhancing Hereford as a shopping experience and we are looking forward to discussing with traders and other groups how we might move forward to act on the results of the consultation”.
The council is also developing a new look to adjacent Widemarsh Street in the city centre, which is a key gateway to the Buttermarket. The pedestrian friendly route will encourage visitors to the city to move between the historic core and the new retail and leisure development.