My hometown shows that high streets have to change or die

An empty Marks & Spencer building in Aberdeen has become emblematic of the challenges facing high streets across the country. The once-bustling granite mile of Union Street, a key shopping destination for the north-east of Scotland, now stands vacant with its sign removed and windows boarded up. Marie Sim, a lifelong Aberdeen resident, lamented the decline, stating there's nothing to shop for now and that the situation is horrendous.

Aberdeen is actively tackling its high street vacancy problem with a comprehensive plan that includes filling vacant units and revitalizing the city center. The council has allocated millions of pounds to make the city center a destination once again, focusing on creating an experience economy with new food and drink markets and a major seafront redevelopment.

High streets play a crucial role in how residents feel about their communities. The sight of empty shops and graffiti can create a vicious cycle, discouraging shoppers, deterring investment, and leading to anti-social behavior. Politicians have been trying for years to rejuvenate town centers, with Andy Burnham advocating for them to become symbols of Britain's renaissance. However, the prospects for town centres' survival remain uncertain.

One in eight properties on British high streets are currently vacant, a number that has remained stubbornly high for years. Jackie Sadek, a former government adviser on urban regeneration, notes that a silver bullet solution has yet to emerge. A major obstacle is fractured ownership, with shops and buildings often owned by multiple landlords, sometimes through offshore companies or complex structures, complicating decision-making and large-scale regeneration efforts.

While some vacant units are available, finding an interested party willing to take them on is another challenge. Operating costs for high street businesses have risen due to higher employment costs and business rates. Moreover, the long-term decline in footfall on many high streets, as people shift towards online shopping and services, has yet to fully materialize.

Aberdeen's decline began in the late 1970s with the rise of out-of-town retail centers and the subsequent shift of wealth from the energy industry, once a major driver of the city's prosperity. By 2022, Union Street had hit rock bottom, with Aberdonians abandoning the high street for a shopping center near the railway station. Bob Keiller, head of the Our Union Street coalition, emphasized that the city had fallen out of love with its own community.

In response to the decline, the coalition focused on restoring civic pride and filling vacant units. They conducted a comprehensive audit of the street, tracking down absentee landlords, logging empty units, and identifying reasons for vacancy. Volunteers cleaned and painted empty properties to make them more attractive to potential tenants, and they improved the streets by picking up litter, weeding, and painting bins.

A website was created to collate available properties and list financial incentives, such as council fit-out grants and two-year discounts from business rates.