4:40pm Monday 9th August 2010
By Michael Pickard
Ten new traders have opened for business in Watford Market.
From selling African and Caribbean and Thai food to computer equipment and home furnishings, the new stalls found inside the Charter Place indoor market will provide a welcome boost to established traders.
This comes just a fortnight after Mayor Dorothy Thornhill categorically stated that the market was not closing.
At a meeting of the Watford Market Working Group, stallholders reported that customers were still asking them if it would be closing permanently.
The uncertainty surrounding the market's future stems from plans to move it outdoors, into the High Street, last year. However, this proposal was scrapped following protests from traders and customers.
The Mayor told the meeting: “I cannot stress how much damage was done by the kind of confrontation that occurred over the market. It did damage people's confidence.
“I'm hoping now that period has passed, we can all say that's not happening. I never miss an opportunity to say it.”
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