New business developments in Pepper Grove Mall and the Church Square area will benefit Grahamstown in a number of ways. In the first place they will create jobs in a town where unemployment is rife.
New business developments in Pepper Grove Mall and the Church Square area will benefit Grahamstown in a number of ways. In the first place they will create jobs in a town where unemployment is rife.
The building of the new developments is already creating new jobs in the construction industry while the retail sector will require more staff once the new stores are open. The multiplier effect of the additional jobs and economic activity will make a significant improvement to the long term prospects of the local economy.
Secondly, the expansion of stores and the securing of the parking lot between High and Dundas streets will significantly improve the safety and appearance of an area that is currently looking decidedly run down.
The heart of Grahamstown will be upgraded and will certainly attract other new businesses.
Consumers will have the added benefit of having more shops to choose from. The wider choice will, in turn, intensify local competition which is generally a good thing for shoppers.
However, there are critics of the new building developments who rue the changing face of Grahamstown. They lament the degeneration of a quaint old university town into just another country dorp sporting garish billboards of American economic imperialism. They were livid when a Victorian style house on the corner of Somerset and African Streets was demolished to make way for modern student accommodation.
It seems inevitable that in order for the economy of Grahamstown to grow, it will necessarily lose some of its traditional charm, but that does not mean that progress and old fashioned enchantment cannot co-exist. We should do all we can to preserve the distinctive character of local architecture, but it needs to be done in such a way so as not to restrict progress.
The engine of Grahamstown, Rhodes University, is growing. In years to come, more students will require accommodation and they will demand a greater choice of food outlets and supermarkets.
So too, the demand for jobs is already overwhelming. It is now up to the people who run this town – the municipal authorities and its entrepreneurs – to manage the pent up demand for accommodation, choice and jobs without destroying our unique heritage.
