ONE thing that worries me about the consultants report on Royston town centre is that can anyone suggest a retail outlet that can cover the rent as asked by the out-of-town landlords, the business rates, general overheads such as insurance,cover wages, st

ONE thing that worries me about the consultants report on Royston town centre is that can anyone suggest a retail outlet that can cover the rent as asked by the out-of-town landlords, the business rates, general overheads such as insurance,cover wages, stock purchase and generate sufficient sales to provide the proprietor with an adequate standard of living?

Let the consultants and me know.

Your correspondent Mr Spall (Postbag, February 14), hits the nail on the head viz-a-viz Tesco and car parking charges.

I rarely use the car to town and had envisaged by the tone of criticism of the car parking charges, that the fees were astronomical.

I was surprised to see that at the town hall car park, one hour's parking is still only 50pence. Hardly crippling.

We do have a supermarket in the town centre known as Somerfield: a hugely improved and much-liked outlet and much used by the elderly and the car-less.

I have heard suggestions that we need a department store in the town centre. Perhaps, may I suggest, Tesco is fulfilling that ambition?

It is said that there is a very high level of internet usage in the town which means that more and more people are buying on line, especially among the younger population.

There is no ready answer to the town centre problems. It is one being suffered by small towns throughout the country.

I just hope that the North Herts District Council does not spend too much of the taxpayers' money trying to solve the impossible

JOHN PETERS

Green Drift

Royston