COUNCILLOR Beesley states in his letter (‘We are all here to help’ March 15) that the council has no power over the number of planning applications for more restaurants, cinemas, flats etc.

This of course is true.

However it cannot be coincidental that every proposal for “town centre regeneration” contains a slightly different mix of the same ingredients.

Developers would not go to the vast expense of employing planning consultants and drawing up these plans unless they thought they had a reasonable chance of it being a success.

So perhaps the council is sending out the wrong message?

It is clear that the inhabitants of this town do not want redevelopment just for the sake of change.

There are still empty shops sitting in Westover Road as I write this letter.

How many more will there be on the back of the Osborne development?

GEOFF COOPER, Methuen Road, Bournemouth