Booming in Boscombe (From Bournemouth Echo)

Booming in Boscombe

7:00am Monday 19th November 2007 in

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BOSCOMBE is becoming the area's boom town.

Trade in the Boscombe shops is this autumn is up by a 25 per cent compared with the same period 2006, council figures have revealed.

The area is reaping the benefits from regeneration schemes, the £1.8 million facelift at Boscombe Chine Gardens and the £2 million renovation of the Opera House. A surf reef and new leisure attractions are expected to draw more visitors in the coming years.

Local people were delighted with the latest good news.

Jon Burdge, 39, from Café Bugaloo, said: "It's excellent news. We expect to see the resurgence going onwards and upwards. We've had a wonderful six months."

Cllr Chris Wakefield said: "There's definitely a recovery from the darker days. The perception was you would not come here because of the drug problems and that it was quite a dingy place to be.

"Now it's seen as a place where you live, work - and shop."

The Thursday and Saturday market has benefited less from the resurgence, thought assistant market manager Pete Bonnar believed it had a "rosy future".

Trader Debbie Hill has run JHM Carpets for 13 years and she said: "Boscombe has cleaned up a lot and I think it's a attracting a bitter clientele than we used to get.

"I find I am selling more expensive goods. I find it easier to sell a £50 rug than the cheapest one at £18," said the 43-year-old from Hurn Village.

Cllr Wakefield also said the council was "looking to do something on the high street to make it a more pleasant shopping experience" but did not disclose what it was.