Hawick and Jedburgh, Scotland plan to revitalize, now that they have significant funding for regeneration funding from the Scottish government.
Hawick is receiving £3 million. When the financial crisis began in 2008, Hawick was quickly hit by job losses and factory closures.
Like so many other towns across Scotland, its high street has suffered ever since.
Executive Committee members agreed that a new Town Centre Resilience Index, using key statistics, will be used to establish where Scottish Borders Council’s (SBC) limited resources should be targeted for maximum impact.
“In Jedburgh, we’ve worked closely with the community and have recently submitted an application for a Conservation Area Regeneration Scheme to Historic Environment Scotland, following on from the success of the Selkirk scheme,” said Councillor Stuart Bell, SBC’s Executive Member for Economic Development.
“Our town centres must adapt with the times to ensure they remain relevant and often this means alternatives to the old retail-only approach must be explored,” said Gordon Henderson, Senior Development Manager for the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB).