Caffe Nero is coming....

Caffe Nero, a photo by davidrobertsphotography on Flickr.

The news that Caffe Nero will be coming to Llandudno will be good for Mostyn Street, I think.

Caffe Nero have confirmed to me that they intend their Llandudno cafe to be open 'late November/early December', which doesn't give them a whole lot of time to refurbish existing premises/apply for change of use. Could it be that speculation about Burtons Corner is misleading and they actually intend to just buy and re-brand an existing cafe business on Mostyn Street? Or are they just very fast workers...?

As always...time will tell.

Manor Fine Foods

What a pleasure it was to see a new independent shop opening in Llandudno's Upper Mostyn Street. Manor Fine Foods & Wares has opened in the old Motorworld premises and have taken the time and trouble to fit out their shop in a very professional manner. It's also great to see someone aiming for the higher end of the market, rather than just the bargain basement 'pound market'. Llandudno's Mostyn Street used to be renowned for the high quality of its independent shops, let's hope that this is the first step towards re-establishing that reputation. I wish them the best of luck.

Chewing Gum

(Photo Credit)

The state of Llandudno's main streets are a disgrace. I'm not talking about the general standard of maintenance or litter...I'm talking about chewing gum...it is everywhere and it looks disgusting. To the best of my knowledge, there has not been any effort made by Conwy Council to remove chewing gum from Mostyn Street's pavements in 5 years at least, and maybe a lot longer.

The next time you're walking along Mostyn Street, take a look down at your feet and you'll see how bad the problem is. Over in Rhyl, Denbighshire County Council have the main streets steam cleaned (the most effective method of chewing gum removal) twice yearly. Back in May 2005, Conwy Councillors were complaining about the chewing gum problem and it was agreed that the purchase of a Gumbsuter machine be investigated.

So, four years later, why have Conwy Council done nothing? I intend to email Mike Priestley (Cabinet Member for the Environment) and ask him...