Northampton Market to move to new location
Northampton Market’s long-delayed move to Commercial Street car park has finally been confirmed by West Northamptonshire Council (WNC). Traders are now believed to have until the end of the month before they need to move trade to their new home. Traders are being forced off the 11th Century market square ahead of an GBP8.4 million renovation of the square, expected to take up to two years.
Works have been delayed twice since they were announced last February, with the move originally taking place in summer 2022 and then last November. But at a meeting of the Northampton Local Area Planning Committee on Tuesday (January 10), permission to relocate the market to Commercial Street car park – near the Carlsberg roundabout – was approved, with works set to begin next month. Joe Fitzpatrick, son of famous market trader ‘Fitzy’, says: “it feels like someone has died, a part of me has died.”
READ MORE: Northampton amongst top ten places with the most successful new businesses in the UK It was announced last February that traders would be moved to the car park on the edge of town to make way for construction work on the market square. WNC says traders cannot stay while renovation is carried out due to “practical issues in providing a safe environment” and “the significant costs of the project.”
A ‘Save the Market’ campaign was launched by Eamonn ‘Fitzy’ Fitzpatrick, who had traded on the market for almost 60 years, to stop the move with petitions and public awareness. He repeatedly insisted the market would suffer in Commercial Street and said WNC “don’t know what they’re doing”. He passed away following a sudden illness last November.
The Northampton Local Area Planning Committee decided yesterday to approve the plan to use Commercial Street car park as the temporary home of Northampton market until December 2024. Although no exact date has been confirmed, traders will cease selling on the market square by the end of the month before the builders move in. A press release from WNC released this morning, (Wednesday, January 11), revealed renovation of the market square will begin next month.
Plans include new paving, new lighting, an ‘interactive fountain’ and 18 ‘high-quality and bespoke fixed stalls’. Fruit and veg trader Joe said: “This has been hanging over me for over a year now. But we all knew the day would come.” He said a “sombre mood” hung over the market this morning and that “it feels like someone has died, a part of me has died.”
“We rely on turning over a high volume of stock with small margins”, he added before predicting he could lose up to 40 or 50 per cent of business on Commercial Street. “My gut feeling is that it will be all over within a month down there, because they’ll be traders going down there and earning no money.”
Plans for the new market square include a fountain and trees to block the view of some buildings (Image: West Northamptonshire Council)
WNC announced last September that traders would not be charged rent while the market was on the car park. But Joe says “free rent is no good if you’re not making money.” Joe attended the planning meeting last night and said it felt Cllr Jonathan Nunn, leader of WNC who attended the meeting, “and the winning party was standing in the foyer high-fiving.” He said to be given two-weeks notice of moving a market that has been there for 800 years is “a sad way to bowl out.”
But Joe has accepted that the Save the Market campaign is over. He said: “What will be will be, it’s time to move on. I’ve got to give it a go, but I’m not going to go down there and lose money.”
Work on preparing Commercial Street for the market traders has already begun as of this morning, January 11. Joe said he saw the car park had been closed off just hours after the committee approved the plans on Tuesday night. Cllr Daniel Lister, WNC’s cabinet member for economic development, town centre regeneration and growth, said: “Market Square has been Northampton’s centre for trade and a place for the community to gather for hundreds of years, and we want to make sure that remains the case for the future.
“The current market does not meet the needs of our communities, and it is vital that this area is vastly improved to offer an attractive and accessible space for visitors to the town, while putting in measures to address some of the current concerns, such as anti-social behaviour. We are working closely with Northamptonshire Police to consider ways to implement this, such as increased lighting, improved access and wayfinding. Cllr Lister added: “We continue to work closely with market traders to ensure that they are kept well informed on the progress of these works, and they will not be charged stalls rental while the market is temporarily relocated.
The redevelopment will ensure future generations continue to see Market Square as the beating heart of the town. “The temporary location at Commercial Street can be easily accessed by foot and public transport, ensuring visitors can buy products at competitive prices and support local trade. We will continue to work with traders to promote the Market’s provisional site through the redevelopment works.”
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