New town centre manager has a vision for Middleton

New Middleton Town Centre Manager Jim Mcmahon

Middleton's new Town Centre Manager started work last month and now he wants to revitalise the town and encourage more shoppers into the centre.

Jim Mcmahon, 27, an experienced environmental and regeneration specialist, is tasked with ensuring Middleton centre takes full advantage of developments planned for the shopping areas, which he describes as the biggest opportunity Middleton has had for decades.

He said: “The new Tesco superstore, and the superb new Middleton Arena are going to provide a major boost to this town, both for residents and visitors, but it’s important that the area takes full advantage of all this investment.”

Mr Mcmahon lived in Middleton for 12 years, attended Middleton Technology School and still has family there.

Howard Gibbons, Chair of the Town Centre Consortium said he was delighted with Jim’s appointment. He said: “Here we have an experienced town centre manager joining the team to help us move forward. The investment that is being made will help re-energise the town centre and provide a launch pad for new ideas, breeding confidence in both current and prospective investors. The regeneration of Middleton is gathering momentum now, and it’s up to us to ensure it gets the boost it has needed for a long time.”

He admitted he was pleasantly surprised when he returned to the town earlier this year. “I was excited and impressed. I could see that things are really starting to happen. The new bus terminal gives a fantastic impression as you arrive in the town and the plans for the centre really have the wow factor,” he said.

He is determined to ensure all this regeneration comes together so that developments such as Tesco and the Arena benefit the wider area.

He said: “Tesco is going to be a real positive in terms of attracting more shoppers to Middleton, but what we have to do is ensure other retailers benefit from these visits, by ensuring there are good pedestrian links so Tesco shoppers can easily walk across to the centre.”

“I’m talking to retailers now, finding out what they want. It’s going to be important to attract new businesses, but we need to support those we have, making Middleton an attractive place to shop. we have lots of excellent independent smaller retailers offering a good alternative, but they will need support if they are to compete.”

With the new Tesco superstore due to open in December 2009 and the arena set to provide all year round sports and entertainment, Mr Mcmahon is determined to ensure Middleton becomes a destination that more and more people want to keep coming back to: “This is such a great opportunity. There are over 200,000 people within a fifteen minute bus or car journey away. I want use the Middleton Gardens as a vibrant base for the market, arts, street entertainment and fun. The arena will help ensure visitors are in town during the evenings too, so it’s not just about weekends and the daytime.”

“The welcome and support I’ve received from the retailers, Township and Councillors has been great. They realise change is needed and are really positive. I need to ensure all this enthusiasm is focused.”

Over the coming months Mr Mcmahon plans to create a business forum to give retailers a louder voice, and wants to raise the profile of the town regionally:“Middleton is currently going through a period of immense change, with a multitude of developments and proposed new buildings in the town centre. It’s the second largest town centre in the Borough and is well placed to really prosper in the coming years.”

Initially the Town Centre Manager is funded by Middleton Shopping Centre, Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive and Rochdale Council as part of their Township Service, but funding will eventually be transferred to the Town Centre Management Company.