Marianne Moxon has written a letter to express her disappointment about the retail offer and visitor experience in Oxford.
I have lived in Oxford for almost 40 years and have always been proud to take visitors to the city centre, until recently that is.
What was an apropos shopping area to the historic and beautiful buildings of Oxford has now become an embarrassment.
The tasteful shops and good eating establishments have all either moved to the Westgate or just gone out of business.
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The new signage is totally out of character with this historic city and empty shopfronts despoil the atmosphere.
Most of the new shops sell cheap tourist gimmicks and souvenirs, and the ones that have stayed are struggling as shoppers have gravitated to the Westgate.
Healthy traditional eateries like The Nosebag have been supplanted by the likes of Wendy’s, Starbucks and Candyland.
Oxford is designated as a Fair Trade city but the best fair trade shop in Oxford, Fairtrade at St Michaels, is threatened with closure.
The historic Covered Market is a shadow of its former self - most of the traditional food shops are gone. And what was charming Golden Cross has more empty shop fronts than shops.
In the 1980s Bill Bryson is his book Notes from a Small Island expressed dismay at the sad state of Oxford city centre.
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I wonder what he would say if he visited Oxford now and saw the total devastation of Cornmarket, Broad Street and the High Street.
He would be even more shocked to see that Oxford has allowed The Eagle & Child (Tolkien & CS Lewis’s Bird & Baby) to close.
Disappointed tourists who come to Oxford to visit this landmark stand forlornly in front of this sad, closed historic pub.
Endless coffee shops selling coffees to take away in throw away cups and drinks in plastic glasses are contributing to the litter and pollution of the city.
Why is this happening in our beautiful and historic city and whose fault is it?
When Westgate was developed, was there a plan put in place for the historic centre of Oxford?
Marianne Moxon
Oxford
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This story was written by Andy Ffrench, he joined the team more than 20 years ago and now covers community news across Oxfordshire.
Get in touch with him by emailing: Andy.ffrench@newsquest.co.uk
Follow him on Twitter @OxMailAndyF
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